By Any Other Name
by Phaerix
Summary: When Torey Adams goes to school, he's expecting awe-inspiring holograms, new experiences, and the thrill of a good duel. When the duels become much more than what he bargained for, can he handle it when it's not just his life points at stake?
1. Dawn of a New Duel

Preface/Foreword/Beginning Notes

This story requires _some _basic knowledge of the game mechanics themselves. However, I will explain certain things like card effects and monster appearances and whatnot. Fret not; I won't leave you all in the dark.

Life points, the "Hit Points" in Yu-Gi-Oh (GX) will be displayed every time there is a change. When a monster is summoned (or pointed out) its statistics will be displayed as in the following manner: (Level/Attack/Defense). They will also be displayed when there is a change in any of the statistics.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, nor do I own the card game itself. I own most of the characters here -- most resemblances to existing, non-Yu-Gi-Oh! Characters are intentional. Any character that I do not mention at the end of the first chapter the character was introduced in that bears a resemblance to a character you are aware of is not intentional, and is coincidental. I swear.

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Chapter 1: Dawn of a New Duel

-~-~~-~

The sun shone in through the open window, curtains flaring in the pleasant breeze. Golden rays crept upon a pair of closed eyes, causing them to flinch and retreat under the covers. All that remained was a shock of tossed brown hair. The figure under the covers grunted.

From beyond the door of the bedroom, an older female voice bellowed, "Torey! Wake up! You're going to be late!"

'Torey' refused to move. His entire head was now under the covers, with a pillow for an added sound barrier.

Noting the silence, heavy -- or angry -- footsteps made their way across the hall to Torey's door. Upon reaching it, thick, dull sounds struck the door, accompanied by constant cries of "Torey!" reaching in through the cracks under the door. Torey remained hidden. Finally, as if fed up, the female's bellowing ceased, and the door was at rest.

From beneath the covers, Torey breathed a sigh of relief, and pulled the covers away from his face. He had amber eyes set in a soft face, framed from above by his short brown hair.

The door flew open, revealing a tall woman graced with similar features as the bed-ridden boy. Her form was slightly wrinkled and covered in a plain pink dress, though it commanded an air of superiority and all-encompassing power. Her own brown hair was tied in a loose ponytail, though it showed much less age than her face. In fact, her hair was gleaming in the morning light. "Torey Adams! Get yourself out of bed this instant! The boat leaves in half an hour!"

It took a few moments for the words to sink in. "It's already seven-thirty?!" he cried out. "I'm going to be late!" He jumped out of bed and dove into his closet. In a muffled tone he yelled, "Thanks Mom!"

By that time she had already gone back to the kitchen. Torey rummaged through his closet and tossed out a backpack, a pair of pants, a shirt, miscellaneous bits of important clothing, a duel disk, a profane term, and a pair of sneakers. "Alright. That should be everything. Though I probably shouldn't have tossed the disk," he mumbled, shaking the boomerang-shaped device. He made his way into a pair of khaki pants and a green shirt, stuffed everything into his backpack, slipped on his shoes, and dashed out of his room into the kitchen.

"Torey, you're going to need a lot of help once you get there. If I'm not around you're going to be in a world of hurt every morning," his mother joked.

Torey wasn't very amused, and gulped down a glass of milk. He took the piece of bread on his plate and ran to the door. "Thanks again Mom! Take care!"

"They just keep getting younger and younger..." Ms. Adams mused.

On the road, a boy with brown hair ambled towards the sunrise. "She is right, though," Torey said to himself. He took a mild pace towards the docks nearby. "Already going out on my own... with just a bunch of cards. Then again I _am _going to a school that teaches me how to use these better." He took out a card from his green deck box, and held it up to the sun. "We're going to do great. I can feel it."

In the distance he could see the ocean, its pristine blue sheen, the ruddy brown planks of the docks, and finally, the polished white hull of the boat, with the letters "S.S. Academia" painted neatly on its prow.

"There it is! My ticket to good times!" he smiled, and dashed for the boat.

Several hours passed. Along with breakfast, there was a fair number of things left behind on the trip.

Stepping off of the ramp of the boat, Torey surveyed the scenery. An island with a volcano in the far east, with numerous buildings built next to it. Many forests and points of elevation were visible, offering nearly any sort of geography a student at this institution could have wanted.

Ahead of the docks and the lighthouse was a large group of people about Torey's age. The crowd was immensely diverse -- far too many differences among everyone to distinctly point out anything besides the age range: teenage.

Torey walked ahead, straight to the back of the crowd. At the front there was a man raised upon an unseen platform. The man was dressed in a maroon trench coat-type uniform, and spoke into a microphone held in his hands. "I would like to welcome you all, prospective students. I know most of you have already taken your written exams and would love the chance to show off your dueling skills in the practical exams, but I would like a choice few words with you before that." He cleared his throat. "I am Arthur Kans, the principal of this institution. I suspect that most of you are here to advance in possible dueling careers, or at least finely develop your abilities enough to be proud of yourselves. Therefore, I wish to serve you all these next three years to the best of my abilities." He smiled. On closer inspection, he was rather tall, though young, blue-haired, and well-built. He also seemed a little under aged to be the head of any institution.

Standing in the back, Torey felt the pressures of boredom sink into his being. "Okay. Thank you, sir. Now let us go!"

Beside him a boy with spiked scarlet hair nodded. "You're telling me. I bet he could go on for another hour if he wanted to." He wore a bright red jacket, and his hands were neatly shoved into his brown pants' pockets.

"Yeah. He looks young enough to," Torey added. Turning to the redhead he asked,"Say, what's your name?"

He seemed happy to oblige. "The name's Roy Flagrun. I aim to become the number one fire duelist in Duel Academy! ...and maybe the world!" He shot his finger into the air. His equally scarlet eyes betrayed a deep, inner fire.

Torey laughed. "I'm Torey Adams. I don't have a goal like that, really. But I do want to make myself better. And this," he fished out his deck box, "is going to be my ticket there!" After taking it out and holding it in front of him, he quickly noted, "Actually... I _do _want to be the best. But _these _are still going to be my way to the top!"

Principal Kans was still going on. He had a water bottle, but it was clearly empty. "And with that, I believe you should all head to the main facility. There are staff members set up around the perimeter, so you can't get lost." Some snickers rose from the audience. "I'm serious." More snickers. "Yeah. You're all dismissed."

"Well Torey, I guess we should get going. Don't want to be late for our first test!" He dashed on ahead to the blob of at least one hundred teenagers.

"W-wait! Roy!" He stopped in his tracks. He pointed to his chin and stared at the clouds. "Hmm," he began. After a minute or two he came to a conclusion. "His name sounds like mine! Kind of."

Unfortunately, Flagrun was already too far ahead to notice.

"Damnit," Torey uttered before running off.

The main building of Duel Academy was a hemispherical structure with various pillars and columns adorning its outer features. Three towers rose from the ground around the main building, each topped with a colored hemisphere: red, yellow, and blue. They corresponded to the different dormitory options for the students at the academy.

The island had plenty of walking space and a rather sizable amount of clearings for picnics. Or duels. Island residents were usually inclined to the latter, but sometimes there were a choice few who opted for the more peaceful option. Duels were generally allowed at any point during the day, though staff members encouraged students to refrain from nighttime dueling.

Within the main building, one would find that it appeared much like a college-level facility. The first floor contained the main arena for official duels, which seats roughly four hundred total students. The second floor housed the school offices and auditoriums. Classes were held in a seminar-type format, which received mixed reviews from students and alumni. The institution also doubled as a college preparatory if the student(s) felt the express need for a rigorous academic schedule along with the dueling aspect of the curriculum.

Needless to say, first-year students avoided the academia when they could.

Within the pristine sheen of the white walls, Torey and Roy found themselves utterly lost.

"Wow..." Torey began.

"This is awesome," Roy finished.

They both grinned and headed for the lower arena.

The basement level contained the largest open arena space, set up with white lines indicating six spaces to duel. Given the size of certain monsters, the necessary space was placed between each area. The entire space itself was roughly four hundred feet in diameter. The six spaces were set up in rows of three, leaving plenty of space for students (and sometimes faculty) to give it their all. There were already six duelists making their stand against six proctors.

One girl had already summoned a massive, winged black dragon. Its burning red eyes glowered down at the proctor, who stepped back slightly. She spoke. "It is inadvisable for you to fear it. It is a hologram."

The proctor stammered. "Y-you shut up! You just surprised me, is all! I expected fairies, not this thing!"

Logically, he would not truly be far off, if going by the girl's appearance alone. She wore her flowing pink hair in a single ponytail that flared out behind her. A single lock of pink hair trailed down her cheek. Her stoic eyes were a cool blue-gray, and she wore a dull grayish-red dress. At first glance she would be construed as a cute little girl. She barely stood up to the proctor's shoulders.

She tapped the device attached to her left wrist, a duel disk similar to the one that Torey had. "I still have four thousand life points, and you have about half of that. Your field is empty. I have a Red-Eyes Black Dragon on the field. Any last words?" (7/2400/2000)

Girl: 4000

Proctor: 1600

"Uh..." The proctor was still in shock, and could not find any words to spew.

"Well, I suppose not." She shrugged. "Inferno Fire Blast!" She pointed towards her opponent, and her mighty beast charged a black-and-red fireball in its mouth, blasting it at her opponent.

Girl: 4000

Proctor: 0

The smoke cleared, and her opponent cleared his throat. "Ahem. Tercia Tessana, welcome to Duel Academy."

"Thank you." She merely turned and walked to the nearby staircase. Torey and Roy both stared as she approached.

"Wow..." Roy began.

"You were awesome!" Torey finished.

Tercia stopped and stared. "Thank you." She blinked and walked on.

Torey and Roy were somewhat put off. The former was the first to speak. "Well, that went well."

"You're telling me."

The intercom began beeping. "**Will Roy Flagrun please report to Area 1? I repeat, will Roy Flagrun please report to Area 1? Thank you.**"

"Well," the redhead stretched. "That's my cue. You seem like a cool kid, so I hope we both pass. Later!" He bolted down the steps, slipping on his duel disk on the way.

Torey sighed. "At least I'll get to watch."

The intercom once again came online. "**Will Torey Adams please report to Area 6? I repeat, will Torey Adams please report to Area 6?** **Thank you.**"

He blinked. "...Guess not." He followed after Roy's example, and stepped down onto the closer end of the area. Across from him was a proctor. Incidentally nearly all of the proctors looked the same, though this one had thick, black sunglasses framing his face.

The proctor cleared his throat. "Applicant, shuffle your deck and prepare to duel."

With a grin, Torey complied, slipping the deck into its designated slot. The disk lit up, and the five spaces on the boomerang portion of the disk built for cards did likewise.

"Duel!" They both cried.

Torey: 4000

Proctor: 4000

Torey drew a card from his deck. "I'll start it off with this, Morphtronic Cameran!" With a flash of light, a human-sized camera emerged, unfolding itself to reveal a humanoid robot with red inner parts. (2/800/600) "Wow, this looks cooler in white light. I'll put down two face downs, and end my turn."

From above, looking down on the fight from the railings nearest the upper walls a trio of blue-clad students conversed among one another. What caught their interest was the fight occurring far below. Behind a small black-and-red robot stood a boy with short brown hair.

A girl with long locks of light brown hair passively leaned over the railings. She wore a mostly standard issue uniform for her dormitory, Obelisk Blue: a white long-sleeved blouse with blue trimmings, a blue skirt, and blue boots. Green eyes completed her fair face. Beside her were two male members of the same dorm.

To her left was a boy in a blue trench coat-style jacket with white trimmings, dark blue jeans, and black sneakers. His teal eyes betrayed little in the way of emotion (notably, neither did his own fair face), and his dark gray hair was styled like an arrangement of icicles around his head. His jacket had noticeably looser and longer sleeves than most, resembling a kimono. There was a long lock of hair that trailed down his cheek, ending similarly to the rest of the icicles.

To her right was a boy in similar dress to her own uniform, with tightly-bound sleeves on a white jacket with no coattails and (of course) blue trimmings. He wore black pants and blue shoes. Rust-colored hair adorned his head, arranged in uneven spikes. His eyes were of similar color to his hair, a rusty reddish-brown. He had a slight tan, bringing out the earthy colors of his hair.

The girl was the first to speak. "Reun, what is that down there at six? I can't make it out." She had a light, soft voice.

Reun, the rust-haired boy, replied, "Seems like one of those Morphtronic things. Like Transformers." His voice was fine and cultured.

"You mean like in that movie?" she asked.

"Yeah." She trained her green eyes down to the field again. The proctor had summoned an Axe Raider (4/1700/1150) to his own field, and sent him to charge at the brown-haired boy's robot. It was cut in half and exploded.

Torey: 3100

Proctor 4000

The girl sighed. "Too bad. He's already a fourth of the way down and he didn't use either of his face down cards."

"Love at first sight, April?" Reun teased. He was immediately met with a backhand to the face.

"In your dreams, Reun..." A vein pulsed in her forehead. "So Rei, do you think that kid has a chance?"

The dark-haired boy shrugged. The cloud they appeared began to dissipate.

Torey grinned through the smoke, and proudly declared, "Alright! I activate Cameran's effect! I can now summon a level four or lower Morphtronic from my hand, like this one! Go, Radion!" Another light flashed on the arena, displaying a massive human-sized portable black radio. It unfolded itself, with a small bulb with an antenna for a head, and its chest was an LCD display. It spun its power cable like a flail (4/1000/900). "And since it's in attack position, it and any other Morphtronics gain 800 attack points!" (4/1800/900)

"Very well," the proctor nodded. "I will lay a facedown and end my turn."

"And mine begins!" He drew a card. He slapped it down onto the disk, crying out, "With this! Magnen!" A blue horseshoe magnet with red poles spun out from the light, unfolding itself to create yet another robot. One of its poles divided to form its feet, the other became a backwards-facing horn. It released a number of sparks. (3/800/800) (3/1600/800)

"Impressive, applicant. Well, what do you plan to do? My Axe Raider is on the field with a face down card behind it."

"Well, sir... I just plan on gunning it. Radion! Attack that Axe Raider! Morning Star Cord!" Torey cried out. On command, the radio robot spun the cord madly, loosing it and its prongs towards the axe-wielder.

Shaking his head, the proctor raised his hand, flipping up his trap. "Negate Attack. I think it's self-explanatory," he drolled, as a flaring blue barrier appeared to stop the flying cord.

"Dang. So close. Well, since I can't attack anymore this turn, I'll just leave the turn like that."

The proctor, clearly unimpressed, continued on, as this was his job. He drew. "I summon Vorse Raider in attack mode!" (4/1900/1200) Another axe-wielder rose to the field, with a more fiendish appearance than the noticeably human Axe Raider. "Now, Vorse Raider! Attack Radion!" The monster charged towards the robot, though was pulled towards the magnet robot. "What's happening?"

"Before anything happens, I flip up Waboku!" Torey exclaimed. "Thanks to it, I take no battle damage and my Magnen is safe, to boot." The magnet robot was surrounded by a film of energy, protecting it from the blade. "So. Magnen's a magnet. If he's in attack mode, you have to attack it only with the monster with the highest attack.

Meanwhile, the trio of blue-clad students ambled down the steps to get a closer look at the next wave of student candidates.

April appeared impressed with the applicants thus far. "Hey, do you two remember the girl with the Red-Eyes?"

"Sorry, April. No student has red eyes here," Reun said bluntly.

Upset at the blithe remark, April whirled and stared into Reun's eyes. "The dragon, you dimwit. The dragon!"

Reun sweatdropped. "No jokes. Got it," he noted, waving his hands defensively and shrinking back. "Yeah. She seemed a little strange. I thought she'd be a little... bubblier, given her appearance."

"No, I mean... she looked familiar," she said distantly. "I can't help but think that we've seen her somewhere before."

Reun stood up, giving off the impression of an intellectual. He stroked his beardless chin, and in the manner of a sage he thought long and hard. He looked back up to the top steps, where Tercia gazed down at the duels below. "I can't say for sure. The pink is definitely recognizable."

April looked worried. "Any ideas, Rei?"

Rei shook his head.

The proctor seemed amused as his darker fiend returned to his field. "Impressive move, boy. I will lay a face down card and end my turn." A card back appeared behind the two axe-wielding monsters.

Torey, seemingly very excited, drew a card from his disk. "I'll play the spell Accelerator!" A small turbine and exhaust system attached itself to the back of a translucent image of a boom box, and dove into Torey's deck. The exhaust system exploded, destroying the face down Mirror Force on the proctor's side of the field. "You just saw its first effect. I can pull a Morphtronic monster from my hand and send it back to my deck. Then I can destroy one of your cards! Oh, and draw a card too." He pulled another card. "And now I'll equip Magnen with the Morphtronic Engine!" A small golden power unit attached itself to the magnet monster's back, revving and pulsing power into the machine. "This gives level three or lower Morphtronics double their original attack strength!" he happily cried out as the magnet's sparks grew wilder. (3/2400/800)

The proctor braced himself.

"Magnen, attack Vorse Raider with EMP Wave!" the magnet complied, balling up its mechanical hands and loosing a pulse of distorted air at the fiend, shattering it.

Torey: 3100

Proctor: 3500

"Radion, Morning Star Cord!" the plug careened towards the orange-skinned warrior, giving it the same fate as its fellow axeman. "Your move!"

Torey: 3100

Proctor: 3400

Grunting, the proctor drew. "I will lay Giant Soldier of Stone in defense mode!" A large cinderblock warrior crossed its arms over its chest. (3/1300/2000) "And I'll leave another face down for you to play with."

"Alright then," Torey noted as he drew. "I'll play another Accelerator, returning Clocken to my deck to destroy your face down card!" A small rectangular stopwatch was burst into Torey's deck, allowing the unit to destroy the proctor's Sakuretsu Armor. "And another card for me!"

"Damn it!" the proctor shouted.

Grinning, Torey rose on the momentum he built up and slapped a card onto his disk. "This is it! My one-way trip to victory! I summon Morphtronic Datatron in attack mode!" (3/1200/600) (3/2000/600) An orange canister-type lighter unfolded itself, revealing yet another robot. The lighter's windscreen was shaped like a cannon, and stuck out from the lighter's cap.

"This won't end well," the proctor mumbled.

"You bet it won't!" He exuberantly pointed forward, like a general on the field of battle ordering his troops. "Magnen, EMP Pulse!" The magnet monster cupped its hands, and shoved them forward in the likeness of a famous fighter, loosing another pulse of distorted air to destroy the cinderblock warrior. "Radion! Datatron! Morning Star Cord and Ignition Blast!" The radio twirled its cord and the lighter began sparking, and as the former threw its pronged weapon, the lighter's fire surged alongside it and they impacted the proctor simultaneously.

Torey: 3100

Proctor: 0

The trio of students in blue looked on in earnest interest. They saw the proctor still standing among the smoke, and saw his hand outstretched towards the brown-haired boy. The boy joyously ran up to the proctor and--without remorse--violently shook his hand with a vibrant look on his face.

All one could hear from his mouth were the words, "I'm in!" repeated several times.

Reun ran a hand through his rust-colored hair and idly noted, "Well, hey. That kid got in."

"That kid with the phoenix won, too," April replied. "So that's at least three interesting kids we can watch for."

"I take it I'll watch the pink-haired girl, Rei can watch the phoenix-kid, and you can watch the brown-haired boy! We'll be like babysitters!" Reun happily suggested. He was immediately met with a hard right hook to the face from a whirling April.

"I really wonder why you haven't died yet."

Roy had completed his match just moments before Torey, and his grin and fiery eyes could not belie his joy. As soon as the two met after Torey finished being accepted, they stuck out their fists and lightly punched each other's knuckles. They both laughed. "Well," Roy began, "looks like we'll be here from now on."

"You got it."


	2. High Noon Phoenix

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Chapter 2: High Noon Phoenix

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Duel Academy's students were divided into three rankings (and their associated dormitories): Slifer Red, Ra Yellow, and Obelisk Blue. Students in Slifer Red made poor grades on the written entrance examinations or barely passed the practical exam. Students in Ra Yellow were those of average standing in either category. Obelisk Blue was the supposed highest ranking. Only students from associated preparatory schools, students with heavy financial backing, or with exceptional scores on both the written and practical portions of the entrance examinations were granted admission to the House of Blue.

Needless to say, most students treasured the chance to be placed into Obelisk Blue. Not only were they granted personal prestige just by being students of that dormitory, but they were also granted the grandest of living conditions, the finest foods, and somewhat special treatment by faculty and staff.

The conditions that a Ra Yellow was placed in were not considered too far off from those of Obelisk Blue. They were not offered the grandest of services, but housing was just a few notches lower than where the higher dorm stood. While Obelisk students were offered hotel suite-styled housing, Ra students were given motel room-styled housing.

The popular opinion of the living conditions of the Slifer Red dormitories is, frankly, that they are firmly lackluster. Slifer students are offered a healthy minimum as far as rooming is concerned--a trio of bunk beds stacked on one another on one side of the room, and a slide-door closet on the other. There was not nearly enough space for any interior decorating. Dining is also an unpopular thing in the Slifer world. Food is not necessarily scarce, but the quality is lacking.

"Ah, Torey Adams and Roy Flagrun, you're in room 2A of the Slifer Red Boy's Dorm," said a man with upward-facing brown spikes for hair. He had low-set round glasses on his long face, and he wore a battered red jacket with white trim, signifying what dorm he belonged to. He wore grey pants on his lithe legs, and his arms somewhat bulged through the thinner jacket. "My name is Lloyd Wright, and I'll be your headmaster from now on. Don't even bother calling me Mr. Wright, just call me Lloyd." His gruff voice became an afterthought once he smiled, showing a fair number of wrinkles. "I know the living conditions aren't that great on first appearances, but you'll come to love it. I'm sure of it."

"Thank you, sir," the duo soon replied. They were each handed a simple red jacket and a small electronic phone-like device.

Torey and Roy began walking along the dirt path that led to their new home. Along the way they noticed they were heading towards the edge of the island.

"Say," Torey said, "Isn't this... really out of the way?" He looked around and mostly what he could see is a small strip of land and a building further down... and a building about the same size a little further away.

Roy was visibly confused. "Yeah... are we really the bottom of the barrel?"

"Seems like it. I failed the written portion, I know that much."

"I don't know how I did. I was told that I had an average duel score."

"Doesn't sound very good, in any case."

"Oh, we're here." Before the two stood the Slifer Red dormitory. Its appearance was little more than a large cottage with a red roof. The building wasn't very extravagant. Roy looked down the dirt path and saw a similar red-roofed cottage and noted, "That's probably the girl's dorm."

"Probably. Hey, since we're here, let's go put up our stuff and check out everything else! We don't have to do anything until later tonight, right?" Torey suggested.

Roy brightened up. "Sounds good. I think the welcome dinner is at seven."

They both dashed up the stairs to the first room, 2A. Torey immediately dove to the bottom of the three bunks, and Roy haphazardly clambered to the next one up. The redhead remarked, "You suck."

Torey stuck his tongue out. "Your loss."

"I barely know you and we already have a problem!"

"Hey, at least we're not fighting over a girl."

"This is true. But you still suck."

Upon heading out, the two were clothed in the red jackets worn by Slifer Red students. Roy didn't seem to mind the change that much--in fact, he seemed to enjoy it. Torey complained a little, but soon realized that red was more his color than the next higher color--he felt yellow was a little too bright for him.

Further down the path, they saw a familiar pink head facing towards a somewhat short head of forest green hair. On his back was a red jacket. "Wonder what they're doing?"

"I do not understand why you feel the need to order me to do anything," Tercia droned. She was also wearing the jacket standard to Slifer students. "Your short stature belies any authority whatsoever." She was also wearing grey boots and a pleated crimson skirt.

This comment immediately caused the boy's green hairs to stand on end. His forehead pulsed with several vessels, and he pointed a quivering finger at Tercia. "I've had enough of being called short! That's it!" he cried. "We duel! Now!"

Roy cut in, saying, "Hold on, hold on! What's all this for?" He held in Tercia's arm from reaching to her deck, while Torey kept the boy from attaching his disk to his arm. "What did she do to you?"

"She called me short!"

Roy narrowed his eyes. "That's not a really good reason to duel."

"Yes it is!" the boy insisted.

"Then _I'll _duel you instead! That way we _both _don't have a good reason to duel!" Roy looked at the sky above him. It was roughly noon; the sun was casting harsh, dark shadows directly beneath the four gathered there. It was like a rough western movie, without the tumbleweeds or cowboy personas.

"Fine. I win, you three will _all _become my underlings!" the boy declared.

"What kind of crap deal is that? I win, you lose! It's that simple!"

"No, it's not!" more vessels pulsed in his forehead. He stamped his foot to the ground.

Torey found some interest in stepping into the argument. "Dude, don't be so pissed about it. Can't you talk it out or something?"

The boy was adamant. "No! No more talking! Flamehead! You and me, duel! Now!"

Tercia was indifferent. "This is unnecessary."

"You're telling me. There are good and bad reasons to duel. This is not one of the good ones," Torey said.

Along the beaten dirt path, Roy and the boy stood opposite one another. They each had their disks attached to their arms, and their fingers tactfully and gingerly graced the top cards of their respective decks. Roy held his opening hand of five cards, and the boy did likewise.

They stared at one another, and the sun stared down on them with its hot, piercing gaze. The dirt flared around them, yet the air was silent. The duelists were silent.

The two were horribly immersed in the entirety of their bout. Roy's eye twitched. Collectively, their shouts rang out through the green blades of grass.

"DUEL!"

Roy: 50UR

Boy: 4000

The boy was keen. "Check your life points! They're all screwed up!"

Confused, Roy tapped his disk. _50UR?_ "That's strange. These are all Academy-issued." Immediately the reading fixed itself.

Roy: 4000

Boy: 4000

"Now then," the boy, beginning with impatience, drew a card. "I'll summon Voltic Kong in attack mode!" A brown gorilla with blazing red eyes appeared. Sparks and electric currents flared around it as it roared. (4/1800/1000)

"Nice monster," Roy commented.

"I'm not done! I'll lay two face downs too!" he cried out as two card backs appeared behind his ape. "Now it's your move."

"I'll gladly take it!" Roy retorted. _Already in my hand. That's nice. _"I'll summon Fox Fire in defense mode, and I'll follow your lead, kid! I'll leave two face downs as well!" A small, bipedal fox with a small wispy flame at the tip of its tail emerged from a small pool of embers. It covered its head with its paws, hoping that would give some defensive measure. Two card backs also made their debut, acting as a wall.

"I am _not a kid_!" he yelled. "I'm just _short! _Okay?! And I have a name too! It's Riley Brendan! Forget it and I'll maul you!" He angrily drew. "Just like I'll do now! I summon Enraged Battle Ox!" A humanoid steer with red and gold armor and an axe snortingly rose to the field. (4/1700/1000) "And now I'll have it attack! Battle Axe!" The bull charged forward and swung its axe to chop the Fox in two.

Roy: 2500

Riley: 4000

"What gives?" Roy grunted. "My fox was in defense mode!"

Riley smirked. "Enraged Battle Ox gives a piercing effect to all Beast, Beast-Warrior, or Winged-Beast monsters on my field!"

Roy's eyes narrowed, hiding the fires of vengeance burning there. "Fine!"

"Not that my Voltic Kong needs it too much. Go, Thunderpunch!" he cried. The electrically-inclined ape rushed towards Roy, sending an empowered fist through him.

Roy: 700

Riley: 4000

"And now because my Voltic Kong dealt damage to you, you discard the top card of your deck! Take that!" A spark rose from the ground below Roy's arm, discharging into the deck and loosing one card to drop to the slot for the graveyard.

Meanwhile Torey looked on with a hint of disappointment. "Man, I was hoping for much more from Roy. I mean, he's my roommate. He needs to come up to a few standards."

Tercia was still indifferent. "That is incomprehensible."

"Hey. It makes plenty of sense to me." Torey replied. "If we're going to be friends, we will eventually be rivals. So he needs to be able to keep up with me."

"In your entrance duel you did not fare very well at the beginning either."

"That hurts."

"You know what? You've really stirred the blood in my veins!" Roy cried. One of his facedown cards lifted up, and revealed a sparking generator. "I activate Damage Condenser! This allows me to call out a monster from my deck with attack equal or lower to the damage I received! At a cost, of course, of one card." A treelike machine with tank treads rolled out from the trap. "So I call out Woodborg Inpachi!" (5/500/2500)

"So what? I'll knock it out next turn!"

"I don't think so. Besides, my little fox comes back!" A burst of embers appeared as the fox arose from the grave. "Well, my turn begins now." He drew. "Before anything, I'm going to switch Woodborg to defense mode." The giant robot simply crossed its arms. "Now I'm going to pull something nice out for you! Hand of Nephthys!" Clad in a golden, beak-like helmet, a red-dressed woman with flowing flames for hair emerged. (2/600/600)

"That's your nice move? It sucks."

"Think again, brat." Roy was getting visibly irritated. _How did this kid get into this place? His attitude sucks._ "I'm offering two of these for something bigger!"

"You summoned already!"

"That's not the dang point, brat! It's being pulled from my deck!" The fox and the woman faded away. Roy raised his hand to the sky, and chanted, "Come forth, my Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys!" A golden bird then erupted from a mountain of flames, like an angered volcano. Once the flames surrounding it washed away, it revealed a massive golden bird with flowing, flaming feathers. Its wings were attached at its waist, giving the beast feminine arms otherwise. It crowed a heavenly screech and landed in front of Roy without a sound. (7/2400/1600)

"Hmph. That's not nearly good enough," Riley commented.

Roy was quick to issue a retort. "You haven't seen anything yet, _kid._" He pointed towards the bull. "Attack the Enraged Battle Ox with Firestorm Cyclone!" The Phoenix began flapping its wings while gathering fire in its beak. As it breathed out, the flames formed a column that incinerated the steer. "No prisoners."

Roy: 700

Riley: 3300

"Fine. But I activate Michizure!" Riley called out, his trap flipping up. "Since you've destroyed a monster of mine, I'll do the same to you!"

Roy was unfazed. As fissures opened up under the phoenix, it seemed to lose its will to fly, and sunk beneath into the ravine. It quickly closed after. "I'll set another facedown and end my turn."

"Guess that one's your last, dude. I summon Berserk Gorilla in attack mode!" With burning red eyes, another brown gorilla appeared and beat its chest. It heaved and slobbered and waited for a chance to be set loose. (4/2000/1000)

"Not strong enough. Woodborg's got 2500 defense points," Roy pointed out. "Can't get past that, can't get to me!"

Riley smirked. When he did, he slipped a card into an open slot for a card. "When I throw in the quick-play spell Rush Recklessly, that doesn't matter! My Berserk Gorilla gains 700 attack points!" (4/2700/1000) "Now go! Rabid Smasher!" The gorilla roared, and charged. It balled its fists together and crushed the much larger robot. Riley laughed. "Now what? You haven't got anything to save you now! Voltic Kong! Thunderpunch! End this duel!" The gorilla charged its fist with electricity and charged forward.

Roy stood unfazed. "I've got one thing to say to you, kid."

Annoyed was Riley's response. "What's that?"

Just before the fist collided with Roy's body, a card of his flipped up and produced a blue barrier between the two. "Get rid of my facedown cards before attacking. Mirror Force obliterates all attack position monsters!" The barrier absorbed the gorilla's punch and erupted, sending the animal flying backwards towards the raving monkey behind it. Both shattered at once. Riley gritted his teeth with definite malice.

"This isn't over! I lay two more face downs and that's my turn!" Two more card backs littered the floor in front of him.

"I think it is. My turn begins." With his hand outstretched towards the green-haired boy, he readied his hand as if he were to snap his fingers. "And with this," he began, "I call forth the Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys once more!"

"I destroyed it!" Riley cried out. "You haven't played a spell, and you haven't activated a trap!"

"That's my phoenix' ability, little Riley! Flames of Immortality!" The golden bird slowly emerged from a pool of flames. Once its wings climbed from the pool, it quickly ascended in the air, leaving the lava to simmer below. Roy, with his arm still outstretched, he darkly added, "Now... Rising Phoenix Burst!" With confidence he snapped his fingers, as if his fingers were two pieces of flint. "_Ignition._" The pool of lava from beneath the phoenix burst like a geyser, and molten bits scattered like rain. The molten rain drenched every facedown card on the field, melting and burning them away all at once.

Riley's face was drained. Each card he put down would have prevented Roy from attacking.

"Now, I'll summon Inferno by removing a Fire attribute monster from my grave, like Woodborg." A burst of flames appeared, revealing a face within the mass. (4/1100/1900) "And this, Riley, is my lesson to you: don't start fights without a good reason. It does jack for you." He sighed. "Inferno, scorch that kid with Hyper Heat Wave!" The mass of flames expanded, its influence reaching Riley and distorting the air around him.

Roy: 700

Riley: 2200

"Sacred Phoenix, finish this. Firestorm Shockwave!" The massive golden bird loosed a small ember from its beak, and it gracefully landed onto Riley's white shirt.

"That's it? That's so anticlimactic," Riley said disappointedly.

Torey was equally disappointed. "That's just not a cool finish."

"It gets the job done," Tercia noted.

Roy snapped his fingers. The small ember erupted with the force of a large-scale bomb. The explosion engulfed Riley's small frame, completely concealing him within an expanding sphere of flame. It revolved, rotated, and soon shot skyward in a pillar of flame. It was a sight to behold.

Torey now was awestruck. "Dude! That's amazing!" His jaw dropped considerably.

Tercia however kept an air of indifference. Deep within her grey eyes was a hint of excitement, though she quickly concealed it with an empty expression.

Roy: 700

Riley: 0

"You put up a good fight, I admit," Roy uttered when the holographic flames dissipated. "You're welcome to try again when you have a level head."

Riley was still visibly irritated. He attempted to mask it with a show of sportsmanship: an outstretched hand. Roy's eye twitched, but nonetheless he approached the green-haired boy and shook his hand. "Good game," the youth muttered.

"Good game," Roy replied.

As Roy turned to his other two, fellow Slifers, he patted their shoulders and began ushering them further along the dirt path, towards the center of the island. Tercia objected, saying she needed to head back to her dorm, but Roy's hand was firmly planted around her wrist. She had no simple (or painless) method of escape.

Riley meanwhile stared skyward, covering his eyes from the noontime sun with his hand. "So that's Roy Flagrun... I will put out your fire with the power of the beasts!" Looking instead to the horizon, he sighed. "I need anger management."

Later, Torey entered a sort of fanboy-type persona, marveling over Roy's duel. "Man, Roy! At first you killed my expectations, but those last few moves totally rocked!"

Roy was somewhat sheepish, though he proudly noted, "Thanks. I always wanted to play with fire when I was young. My parents called me a firestarter."

"Still, with a history like that it just seems so much cooler," Torey pointed out.

The crimson-haired boy beamed. "I try."

Tercia then quickly jabbed, "Be wary that your head does not expand."

"What?"

Torey rubbed his head. "I think she's talking about your ego."

"Oh."

Tercia nodded. "Yes. That is exactly what I mean. Also, you may remove your hand. I no longer have a desire to head back." She lifted up her wrist, with Roy's hand still strongly gripped to it.

The crimson-haired boy's face turned crimson itself. "Ah, sorry," he quickly added, releasing his hand.

Rubbing her wrist, Tercia quietly mentioned, "If you wanted to hold my hand, you may find it simpler to ask."

"Uh," Roy was flustered. "I--"

"Be warned, though. I have no romantic interest in you."

A long, haunting silence cast over the trio.


	3. Sunset Serpent

-~-~~-~

Chapter 3: Sunset Serpent

-~-~~-~

As predicted, the welcoming dinner for Slifer Red students began promptly at seven o'clock in the evening. Fortunately for them, the dining area assigned for such students was much more acceptable than the living quarters. Some remained in the cafeteria for longer hours than they would in their own rooms. The two headmasters of the Slifers, Lloyd Wright and Jasmine Mikan, were especially lenient, knowing the living conditions with which they were given.

The cafeteria unit itself was separated from the actual living quarters. It was a third building, set apart from both residence halls, and constructed in between both dormitories. While it still paled in comparison to the higher ranks, it remained the pride of Slifer Red.

Lloyd was the first that evening to utter an audible word above his students. "Alright," he began in his gruff voice. "Tonight's the first night for many of you. I suck at speeches, but I'll do my best." A few chuckles were heard under red jackets. "No, seriously. Anyway, you guys and girls are going to be with us for the next few months or longer, depending on two things: how much you want to get out of here, or how well you perform at the midterm examination." He paused. "Hopefully your main reason for moving up is the second reason. But that's just me."

Torey, Roy, and Tercia all sat at the same table, though an uncanny silence prevailed among them. Tercia was normally silent. Torey was respecting the silence. The true perpetrator was Roy, who had fallen into a state of sullenness since the rejection several hours earlier. His head was downcast, and he spoke in mumbles and weak gestures. _I didn't mean for that to happen. _Strings of similar thoughts have plagued him ever since that moment. Particularly, the first and last of that list were the ones that occurred the most, ringing through his mind as he sat among his newfound friends.

Torey was somewhat worried, though kept an ear open in order to listen to Lloyd. He constantly averted his gaze to his crimson-haired companion, wondering when he would come to his senses. Tercia remained aloof, as was her custom. Her attention was keen on Lloyd Wright's spectacles, which slid down his face at a remarkably slow pace. Snails could inevitably out-speed them at the rate they were dropping.

"...and thus we have everything available to let you go on into the world as full-fledged duelists. Pro-league material and what have you. That's all I really have to say business-wise. Anything you'd like to add, Jasmine?"

The woman he was referring to was idly twirling her locks of golden-brown hair. Her small lips were slightly parted, showing her mild disinterest, and her sapphire eyes twinkled even in their inattentive gaze. A red jacket graced her frame, and (according to most male students) even constricted it in a few choice places. "Oh," she said slowly. "I have nothing important to say. Just do your best. We'll be behind you for as long as you'll let us." Her voice was quick and slightly guttural, hinting heavy traces of a German background.

The students in red nodded.

Lloyd then smiled. "Alright, everyone, dig in." With merely a second of pause, the students all voraciously devoured the contents of their plates, a simple meal of rubbery lasagna, a small salad, a piece of toast, and a cup of water. Despite the complaints heard from many earlier years, Lloyd understood the conditions and made no note of it. He believed that his students would think likewise.

One student rose above the rest, however, and shattered Lloyd's expectations. His voice was loud, clear, and he did not waste any time in his short speech. "Mr. Wright, wouldn't you think it unfair that we, students of the same caliber as any other in this institution, would be issued such paltry services? We deserve the same as everyone else."

Lloyd's response was sharp. "Boy, I don't know what rock you were hiding under, but how you performed in _both _entrance examinations notes how you will be placed here in the first year."

"Yes, I understand that. What you seem to fail to understand is that we are all students to be treated fairly among one another," the student retorted.

Another voice piped up. "Yeah! All humans are created equal and stuff!"

"Shut your traps!" Lloyd yelled. The effect was amplified by two things: his gruff voice alone, and the acoustics of the room. "I don't have patience for ungrateful children. You made it here. That alone should be cause for rejoicing. _Hundreds _of children your age are denied access to this institution. Be _thankful _you are even wearing _red. _I swear, I have to make this statement _every _year. There's always that _one _kid who doesn't understand _appreciation, _like you, Aidan Angus."

'Aidan' shrugged. "Can I help wanting just a little more? After all, conditions aren't exactly favorable among us. I should be entitled to a little complaining here and there."

"No, you should _not _be entitled anything but your red jacket, your PDA, and your room. We could force you to sleep outside in the woods, Aidan. Would you prefer that? Or would you prefer the more humane living conditions of Slifer Red?" His eyes bore down on the blue-eyed boy. His blonde hair was parted down the middle and its wavy nature betrayed the air of a nobleman. His fair, porcelain looks were hardly an object of hate, though his attitude was certainly a cause for concern.

"I will stay here, sir," Aidan said without vigor.

"Good."

The remainder of the dinner went by swimmingly, and without a hint of issue from any student, Aidan or otherwise. Some students and Jasmine had already chosen to file out about an hour ago, leaving Aidan, Lloyd, and the trio of Torey, Roy, and Tercia to linger in the hall. Lloyd was making conversation with Torey, while Tercia stared out the nearby window at the rising crescent moon. Roy was still inconsolable, though the dark clouds surrounding his head dissipated somewhat. Aidan simply sat there, glaring daggers at Lloyd. Finally he called out, "Mr. Wright, I challenge yo--!"

"No," Lloyd replied.

"I said I _chall_--"

"No means no, Aidan."

"Then one of you three!"

"Why?" Torey asked. "It has nothing to do with any of us."

"I am simply in the mood to duel now. And I am giving everyone a fair chance to accept or decline now..." Aidan drolled.

"Then I--" Torey began.

"I will play you," Tercia finished. She was still gazing outside, and spoke with her chin cradled on her palm. "I have little else to do this evening."

"Tercia, I--"

"It is decided. Do not interfere," Tercia interjected. The evening was full of them.

Aidan licked his lips. "Ah, very well... a cute girl and what? Her pixies?" He let out a small chuckle.

Torey offered a bit of advice. "I wouldn't count your chickens if I were you."

"Says you."

Lloyd was beginning to become upset. "Please, if you must, do it outside. I'd like to lock this place up as soon as I can."

Just outside of the cafeteria, along the dirt paths that diverged one way to the boy's dorm, and the other to the girl's dorm. Tercia stood opposite her opponent, who eagerly fished out his opening hand of five cards. Tercia did likewise, though in a much calmer fashion than Aidan. She asked, "Shall we?"

Aidan smirked. "Gladly."

"Duel!" they both cried.

Tercia: 4000

Aidan: 4000

Aidan drew his sixth card. "Wonderful! I summon Mad Dog of Darkness in attack mode!" A howl was uttered, and a demonic hound with sprawled purple claws and ram-like horns in place of ears emerged from a pool of darkness. (4/1900/1400) "Good boy." The beast's red eyes did not falter, though the creature revealed a small bone-shaped dog tag. A small M was inscribed there. "I'll place one card face-down and also play Heart of the Underdog, and that'd be that."

She drew. "Then I will waste no time. I summon Red-Eyes Black Chick in attack mode." A red egg emerged from the ground. It cracked open and revealed a tiny, thin, black European dragon. It was about the same size as Tercia's torso. (1/800/500)

"Well, you're certainly wasting _my _time if that's the best you've got this turn, little girl," Aidan teased. While Aidan was no tall giant himself, he stood almost a full head taller than Tercia. That did not bother her in the least, and she simply carried on with her move.

"I use my Chick's ability, offering it for its adult form, the Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" she called out. As the tiny infant dragon was engulfed in a swirling red-and-black flame, a hint of a grin emerged. A few moments passed as the flames grew to an enormous size and dissipated in an instant as the familiar red-eyed beast batted them away with its newly grown wings. It roared and small black embers flew out like saliva. (7/2400/2000) It peered back at its summoner, lightly growled, and turned back towards Aidan. Its burning red eyes betrayed no sympathy or mercy,

Aidan was speechless. He, like the proctor who had dueled before him, refused to admit that a girl like her would command such a frightening creature. "You can't be serious," was all that was audible.

"I am." She patted the hologram. "This is my prized creature." She gazed up at it, and a hint of a grin punctuated her lip. "I do not feel particularly aggressive, so I will instead play the spell Inferno Fire Blast!" she called out. She inserted the card into her disk and a mass of red, black, and purple flames gathered in the dragon's toothed maw. It sharply exhaled, sending a blast directly at Aidan.

Tercia: 4000

Aidan: 1600

Aidan grunted. "The hell kind of shot was that?!"

"At the cost of my attack this turn with my Red-Eyes, I can inflict damage equal to its attack strength directly to your life points." She then added a few seconds later, "I may as well add this one. I activate Stamping Destruction, which allows my dragon to step on one of your facedown cards and destroy it." Her massive black dragon hovered over to Aidan's field, brutally stamping down on his facedown Enchanted Javelin. "In addition, destroying your card inflicts five hundred more points of damage."

"You've got to be kidding me." The dragon's innermost toe reached up and flicked Aidan's face.

Tercia: 4000

Aidan: 1100

"I am not."

Torey was thoroughly impressed. Seeing so much damage done in one turn was quite a maneuver. "Wow," he noted, "that was really something. Down to a fourth in just the second turn!"

Roy, however, was less so. "Opposite of me." Roy at the time seemed to not wish to be there. The only reason he was still present was simple -- he had no key. Torey had the only copy.

"Get over yourself!" Torey sharply turned and pressed his presence into Roy's face. "So you made a mistake. Good for you! Learn from it!" His voice was firm, though still noticeably 'Torey.'

Roy was bewildered. "Lay off." He attempted meagerly to push away. "This is none of your business."

"Yes it is. It concerns me now because I have to live with you!" He pondered that statement, wondering if it implied anything. "You call yourself the master of fire? Some master you are! You can't even spark an ember!"

"You shut your mouth!" A different sort of fire penetrated Flagrun's gaze. It was angry, hot, and seething – like it had been festering beneath him for ages. He bore into Torey's own fierce expression, matching the sheer determination expressed with his own inner fire. "You don't understand! You don't know me!"

"No, I don't! That is why I'm trying to get you to stop being retarded so I _can _understand!"

Meanwhile, Tercia delayed momentarily while casually listening to the argument at hand. _You are just like how you play. You cannot play in the middle, you must be either shining brightly or barely smoldering, _she thought. "I will play a facedown card, and end my turn."

Aidan winced. "I'll have your head, girl! I draw!" Angrily, he pulled up a card. "Your options are limited, but mine aren't! Since I drew a normal monster, like this Cosmo Queen, Heart of the Underdog grants me one more card!" The card remaining on Aidan's field glowed, causing a card to jump into his hand. "And now I play something to give me a little more speed: Ancient Rules!" Slipping a card into an appropriate slot, Aidan smirked. "Using this card allows me to summon a level five or higher normal monster without a sacrifice!"

"Interesting," Tercia droned. Unconsciously, her foot tapped against the dirt.

"So come forth, Cosmo Queen!" As he called his monster, it emerged from a magical black vortex. With purple skin, a large, gold headdress, and a crimson dress, one could suppose that she truly was a queen of _something. _Whether or not that _something _happened to be the universe was something none could adequately guess. (8/2900/2450) The pink-haired girl was obviously unimpressed, even as she heard him call out to his creature, "Cosmic Crusher!" As dark energies gathered in the Queen's spindly purple fingers, she shrieked and lashed the ball out at Tercia's Red-Eyes.

Her own gray eyes narrowed as her black beast was obliterated.

Tercia: 3500

Aidan: 1100

"Now for the additional blow: Mad Dog of Darkness! Corruption Crunch!" Aidan cried. His demon hound came from a running start, and pounced upon Tercia's much smaller frame. Its yellowed fangs bore through the night, and purple ooze dripped from the edges of its mouth. She raised her free arm and stepped one foot back, as if she hoped it would block the impact. As the holographic form came down and gnawed on Tercia's arm, she winced.

Tercia: 1600

Aidan: 1100

"Now we're almost even, little girl!" Aidan smirked. "Looks like you're going to have to drive your point home a different way!" He sounded extremely sure of himself. "I've noticed how you play! You don't attack! All you do is hit my life points and avoid my monsters!"

"What of it?" Tercia raised an eyebrow. "You are my opponent. Your monsters are not."

"A cunning philosophy, but it won't save you from my monsters destroying yours!" He hastily added, "Nor your life points."

Torey and Roy were still locked in a heated staring match. Roy gritted his teeth. "Look, Adams. There's just a lot of me that I've left behind that I want to _keep _behind me. That's it."

"Fine, but I'm weeding it out of you once we're all said and done, _Flagrun._"

"Fine."

Something twinkled in Torey's eye. "Say, Roy. I've a secret for you."

The inferno grew suspicious. "What?"

"Exploding penguins," he proudly declared.

A moment of silence was shared between them. Torey stood, grinning brightly. Roy stood opposite him, with as much confusion as a ten-year old handed a calculus test. Roy blinked. He then closed his eyes and covered his mouth, turning around as quickly as possible. He quivered, he stumbled, trying to get away in a limp fashion.

Torey, growing concerned, rushed in front of him and asked, "Are you okay? I didn't think it would be gross…"

Roy burst out laughing. In between gasps for breath, he managed to utter "You suck" multiple times.

After Aidan's dog returned to its master, Tercia shook her head. "Truthfully, you have failed my test. I activate Birthright." Her card raised itself, and the ground in front of her unearthed a pristine Red-Eyes Black Dragon. "With this I can recall a normal monster from my graveyard."

"Why didn't you do that before I attacked with my dog?" Aidan asked, furrowing his brow.

"To test you," Tercia remarked curtly. "To see whether or not you would be so daring as to send a mere poodle against me. I was testing your pride." She paused. "I know for certain that you have a rather powerful monster in your hand that you refused to summon."

Aidan's eye twitched, as he noted the three cards in his hand. Among them was a Summoned Skull.

Without bothering to let him protest, she asked, "Is your turn complete?"

"How did you know?" He ignored the question. "Are you psychic?"

She replied with a quick, "No." She sighed. "I could see it in your eyes."

"You can't see that far. No one can."

"You are misunderstanding me. I could see the gleam in your eyes when you drew that card. There was an excitement brooding, a… happiness overflowing."

Aidan was dumbstruck. "What…"

"Please take it at face value. There is nothing to interpret it beyond what I have told you."

"Who…"

"I told you, do not look into it. If you have no other moves, then I will instead move for you."

"I… end my turn."

"Then mine begins, and this duel comes to an end." She drew and immediately put the card into a free slot. "I play Pot of Greed, granting me two more cards." A horrible green and blue vase appeared, bearing a twisted yellow grin with red lips. Two cards appeared from its opening. "I play Polymerization, allowing me to fuse the Red-Eyes I have on the field with the Meteor Dragon that I have in my hand." A small molten turtle-like dragon emerged in a froth of flames, emitting a dull screech. The two disappeared into the Polymerization card that appeared on the field, swirling together and emerging from it and a pool of lava. The lava spilled forth from the edges of the card, and a molten purple leg stepped out from the picture. There were several cracks abundant in its form, made more apparent as an arm pulled its way out, followed by another molten arm. Its protruding lower jaw retained a multitude of glinting teeth, and immediately after the upper jaw and its beady white eyes came forth. Its entire form then fully came into being, displaying its deep purple and orange hide. It roared a sickly roar, akin to the din of an erupting volcano. "And the result is this: Meteor Black Dragon!" (8/3500/2000)

"Thirty-five hundred?!" Aidan was incredulous, stepping back.

"It is inadvisable for you to fear it. It is merely a hologram."

"Easy for you to say! You're in control of it!" His eyes were widening at the monstrosity before him. It stood at almost twice the size of the Red-Eyes that was once staring him down. While the beast previous glared with pupil-less crimson eyes, this new one glowered directly down at Aidan with mere white spheres. He continued to shrink back.

"I told you. It is a hologram." She inserted another card. "I play a second Stamping Destruction, crushing your final hope in this duel." Her massive molten monster's foot came crashing down, shattering Aidan's Heart of the Underdog. And just as its previous form performed before, its innermost toe flicked Aidan's face. This time, it produced a sizable bump on his chin.

"What gives?!" He rubbed his jaw. "That's not supposed to hurt!" The dragon itself did not seem to mind too much, floating back to its master.

Tercia: 1600

Aidan: 600

"That is very strange…" Tercia noted slowly. "I will now attack your pride. Meteor Black Dragon, eliminate this boy with Incinerator Meteor!" The dragon breathed in, sucking in a large volume of air. Its belly bulged, and it harshly exhaled, spewing a stream of molten rock and red flame at Aidan's Cosmo Queen. It shrieked, shattering in an instant after being burned alive.

Tercia: 1600

Aidan: 0

Her molten monster dissipated, along with Aidan's Mad Dog.

"I lost to a pixie girl and her monster dragons." He sighed. "What in the world has become of me?"

"It is precisely that sort of mentality that cost you this duel, Angus."

Meanwhile, Torey and Roy had just finished making fun of each other, and had since watched the remaining minutes of Tercia and Aidan's duel. Roy stared intently at the space where the Meteor Black Dragon had once been, and his mouth hung agape. Torey stood by casually, though his eyes betrayed a sense of wonderment.

"Even if these past few days have been full of duels without meaning, I'm damn impressed," Torey noted.


	4. Morning Madness

-~-~~-~

Chapter 4: Morning Madness

-~-~~-~

The following morning the duo of Torey and Roy headed to breakfast. What was offered was a hearty meal of pancakes, a glass of orange juice, and a banana. They met Tercia, who apparently had a pair of females hanging around her. One had long flowing hair in a low ponytail, colored green like a fern. Her auburn eyes were accented by eyeliner, and seemed to exude an air of high class. She wore, however, a red blazer along with the remainder of the Slifer students in the cafeteria. The other girl had silver hair, though let loose and reaching down to the small of her back. Her lavender eyes had no makeup, but were instead punctuated by drooping eyelids. She appeared easygoing, and as she gestured her movements were slow and wispy.

"Hey, Tercia!" Torey called out. "Good morning!"

"Good morning," she replied.

"Friends o' yours, girl?" the silver-haired one asked. "Seem like a lively bunch." Her voice was very relaxed, and like her movements it was slow and wispy.

"Yes," Tercia replied. "The one who greeted me is Torey Adams, the one currently yawning is Roy Flagrun."

As he closed his mouth, Roy groggily rubbed the back of his head. "Nice to meet you..."

"How undignified, Mister Flagrun," the green-haired girl noted. "Please be a little more refined in future visits. My name is Alexandra Smithy. Our lovely girl with silver hair is Alcyone Hermeros." Alcyone was idly tracing something with her fingers in the air.

"Ah, right," Alcyone uttered. "Nice t' meetcha."

"Today's the first day of classes, right?" Roy asked. "What time do yours start?"

"We start with Duel History at eight-thirty," Torey said.

Tercia replied, "We three begin our day with English I."

"Sounds boring," Roy remarked.

Alexandra chimed in and began to swoon. "No, I've heard a number of good things about our professor. His name is Denji Voltman, and he is supposedly a wonderful teacher with handsome features. He is also the headmaster of Obelisk Blue."

"Wow, then I guess we'll all be going at academics quite well. We have Melina Silvana. She's the head of Ra Yellow," Torey added.

"Dudes and dudettes," Alcyone began, "It's almost that time. We should go."

"Crud, it's eight-fifteen already?!" Torey exclaimed. "Come on, Roy! We're late!" He snatched Roy's collar and dragged his sleepy form through the cafeteria doors.

"I wonder if they'll be alright," Alexandra asked.

Tercia sighed. "They might."

Along the way, while Torey was running with Roy in tow, he noticed that Roy had fallen even more asleep. He stopped, and while still gripping Roy's collar, pondered for a bit. "What would happen if I did something like this?" He stuck a finger into his mouth, slowly pulled it out, and stuck the contents into Roy's closest ear. Roy's eyes shot open, as if inflicted a fatality. "Good morning, Sleeping Beauty!"

Roy was speechless. He mouthed "What?" multiple times, incredulous at the action.

Torey released his collar, and swiftly ran ahead. "Come on, we're going to be late!"

"You son of a..." Roy spat out. "You're dead once I catch you!"

Torey stuck out his tongue. The chase was on.

While charging down the path, a pair of students in blue blazers walked casually ahead of them. They both exuded an air of superiority, though much unlike the girl from this past morning. The taller one had ruffled black hair, falling down to his shoulders in violent cascades. His shorter partner had bright sea-green hair with brown tips, though his style more fit a bowl cut. They both wore blue trenchcoats with white trimming, standard among most Obelisk Blue students. With hands embedded in their pockets, they marched onward, chins held high. If not for Torey's unexpected physical interjection, the blue pair would have made it quite easily to class in their smug appearance. Instead, they were bowled over by a student in red, followed by another student in red.

"Hey!" The black-haired one barked as he picked himself up. "You reds have no right to be on our path!"

"Tyran, leave them be. We have no need to lower ourselves to _their_ level," the bowl cut said mockingly. He adjusted his silver-rimmed glasses, wincing as he also stood. "Don't let them bug you."

Tyran seethed. "Yes, you are right, Vesper. Puny Slifers have no rights at all. Let us be on our way."

"Now that's just not cool," Torey raised his voice. "I apologize for running into you guys, but I don't think it's fair to just put us down like that."

"Not only is it fair," Tyran began, "but it is also necessary. You redbacks should know your place. We Obelisks are at the top, and there is naught that you ridiculous slackers can do to reach that peak."

"Now you're just being retarded. We can all get up to your level with some hard work!"

Tyran's brown eyes flared. "You did not just insult me." He clenched his fist. "Slacker, I will personally put you in your place. You assaulted me, and now you have assaulted my pride! Vesper! My duel disk!"

Facetiously, Vesper noted, "Yes, Lord Sigurd. Shall I fetch your crown as well?" He handed his disk over.

His counterpart's eye twitched as he grabbed the device. "Do not tempt me, little Rapwood. Your ancestry betrays you. You may have had some prestige in your family line, but rest assured that it is gone now."

Vesper sighed. "If only you knew how to deal with jokes. My life would be much simpler..."

"Well," Torey began, "if it's a duel you want, it's a duel you'll get." He pulled his own disk from his backpack. Moving a ways away from Tyran, Torey activated his disk. His opponent did likewise.

"Duel!" They both cried.

Torey: 4000

Tyran: 4000

They drew five cards each, Torey taking the initiative. "I'll start with this, Morphtronic Radion!" he called out, as the portable radio emerged and unfolded. It swung its power cord around as soon as its arms were in place. (4/1000/900) "And because of its effect it gains eight-hundred attack points when in attack position!" (4/1800/900) "And I'll set two facedown cards, and that's my turn," Torey concluded, two cards materializing.

"Trivial!" Tyran scoffed. "I summon Vorse Raider in attack mode!" He flatly stated as his dark axe-wielding fiend rose to the field. (4/1900/1200) "Now attack with Sword-Arm of Peril!" Vorse Raider roared and jumped up, crashing its blade down.

"I activate my trap card! Desert Sunlight!" Torey called out, his card flipping up. "This forces my monsters into defense mode! And since Radion gets 1000 defense points in defense mode, this stops your attack in its tracks!" His robot reverted back to its radio form, cord lingering behind it. (4/1000/1900) Tyran's monster's axe impacted the radio, but nothing happened.

"Not bad, for a reject student," Tyran mutterered. "I also set two cards facedown, and end my turn."

Torey drew. "I don't see what your problem is. I play the spell Accelerator!" Torey stated. "This allows me to return a Morphtronic monster from my hand to my deck, then I can destroy a card on your field and draw a card! So return, Cameran!" The camera robot jumped up from Torey's hand, a booster package attaching to it. It comically released the robot, letting it fall into Torey's disk while it careened straight at Tyran's Vorse Raider. Torey then drew a card. "I summon Boomboxen in attack mode!" A red boombox emerged and emitted high-volume, high-bass noises. It unfolded, its head flat and saucer-like popping out from its top. (4/1200/400)

"Such... weak monsters," Tyran idly commented. "You had best update your deck, reject."

"You think you're so high and mighty? I think you're sorely mistaken, you bufoon! I will bring you down, I will not stand to lose to an egotistical dumbass like you!"

Roy chimed in. "Wow. That's the harshest language I've heard from you yet, Adams."

"Yeah, I know. He deserves it, though..." Torey sighed.

Tyran had since silenced, though his eyes were downcast and dark. Instantly his eyes shot up, staring straight at Torey. A foul wind snaked its way around, causing Torey to flinch. "You dare?!" He clenched his teeth and his fist, becoming nearly animalistic. "You dare call me a _bufoon_? And a _dumbass_? I will _show _you firsthand what useless, ungrateful _maggots _like _you_," he pointed a quivering finger at Torey, "get when you insult the great Tyran Sigurd! I activate Trap Hole!" He shouted. "This trap allows me to destroy a monster you summon that has at least 1000 attack points! So say goodbye to your annoying noisemaker!" The boombox shattered, and its summoner winced.

"Maybe so," Torey began, "but now I get to use this! Call of the Haunted!" His other card flipped up. "This lets me revive a monster in attack mode from my graveyard! So I beckon you, return to the field, Boomboxen!" The red boombox erupted from the ground, unfolding just like before. "And now I'll show you something good! Radion goes to attack mode!" The radio transformed, spinning its cord. "Not only does Radion get an attack boost, all of my Morphtronic monsters gain 800 attack points!" (4/1800/900) (4/2000/400) "And now attack, Morning Star Cord and Super Soundwave!" Radion thrust his projectile while waves of distorted air were emitted from the fellow music device, all aimed at Tyran. "It's over!"

He merely laughed. "You wish, reject. I activate Negate Attack!" A barrier arose, disippating the waves and removing the momentum from the thrown cord. "In addition to stopping your attacks, my trap ends the battle phase."

"Fine. Your move," Torey said, letting a card back materialize on his field.

At the sidelines, the duelists' companions stood by, watching mostly intently. "I believe he will draw _it _within the next turn," Vesper mused.

"What is _it_?" Roy puzzled.

"It will cause your friend to have... a change of heart."

Roy narrowed his eyes. "The hell is that 'sposed to mean?"

"You'll see." Falling silent, their eyes trained back to the duel.

"Mine begins." Tyran drew, smirking. "And you will fall! I play Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two cards!" The grotesque jar appeared and disappeared. "Now I play Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands!" From the earth below, a slimy, oozing grey hand emerged. It was followed by two, three, ten... and then simply an uncountable number of hands. Its face also bore the same oozing composition. (4/1400/1000) "And I now activate its effect, allowing me to take a ritual spell or monster from my deck to my hand! So I choose Final Ritual of the Ancients!"

"It comes," Vesper noted.

"Damn it, what is _it_?" Roy rubbed his head and groaned. "I don't like thinking about this! It's too early in the morning!"

"Reject," Vesper snickered.

"Not you too..."

Tyran lightly chuckled. "So, I play Final Ritual of the Ancients, offering Invader of Darkness from my hand to summon my ultimate monster!" A dim light emerged from the cracks formed by Manju's summoning. It moved aside, allowing the light to brighten, strengthen, and pulsate from the depths below. The cracks grew numerous, spreading out like a flame in a forest. "Come forth!" A rocky pillar erupted from the epicenter, followed by two more, and a final pair floated up. Rocky armor and a rocky face purged itself of the ground below. Three orbs glowed, blue and red orbs taking the place of its elbows, while a yellow orb replaced its torso. Its arms were stocky and pillar-like, floating as gently as the rest of the creature. Its entirety hovered on a platform-like base underneath the yellow orb. "Reshef the Dark Being!" (8/2500/1500) It made no noise as it lifted one of its massive stony hands. "And now I activate its effect! By discarding a spell I can take control of one of your monsters for the turn!" He motioned with his finger. "So come here, you ridiculous contraption," he seethed as Reshef's hand slowly levitated over to Radion, grasping him and pulling him over to Tyran's field.

"Oh, hell," Torey muttered, retreating slightly. "I don't have anything to counter that..." His eyes lit up. _Or do I?_

"So, what did you call that ridiculous attack? Ah, yes. Morning Star Cord!" Radion obeyed, loosing his weapon on Boomboxen.

Roy was in shock. "A free Change of Heart?!"

The green and brown hairs on Vesper's hair shuddered as he chuckled. "You seem to catch on well. Yes, Tyran's Reshef allows him to make any spell a Change of Heart. That is how you escape the banlist."

"At least it has a shitty attack score," Roy muttered. "My Phoenix can scalp him at any time."

"Your stupid bird has a hundred less attack points. I watched your duel in the entrance exams. You won't get very far against Tyran."

"Says you."

Torey grit his teeth, wincing as the cord went through his monster and impacted him.

Torey: 3400

Tyran: 4000

"And now Reshef, the Dark Being, I command you! Divine Trio's Destroyer!" The golem's three orbs shone brightly, expanding and merging into one white sphere of destructive power. The sphere engulfed Torey, shredding off a few pieces of clothing and cutting the skin of his hand. "Yes! Feel it! Feel the power of us Obelisks!"

Torey: 900

Tyran: 4000

Tyran began laughing maniacally. Its din resounded over the field, ringing in the spectators' ears. Torey grasped the back of his hand, wincing. He looked at his shirt, noticing the burns of his jacket and the missing bits of his shirt. "What?! These aren't supposed to affect the physical realm!"

"Can't take the heat, reject?!" Tyran's eyes bulged as his grin grew psychotic. "This is what it means to be a duelist! Can't take the pain? Leave!"

Vesper gently placed his hand on Tyran's arm. "That's enough, Tyran." He stared intently into his green, battle-crazed eyes, which soon softened to their usual rude appearance. "We'll be late for class."

The great 'Lord Sigurd' simply deactivated his disk and turned around in a huff. "We will continue this later, _reject_." His companion soon followed, hands folded behind his back.

"Are you alright?" Roy asked, jogging over to where Torey's face grew dark. "...Adams?"

"There's something strange about this island... I got hurt," Torey began. "If I were anywhere else in the world I probably would have not had any damage to _my body._"

"Are you sure you didn't just overreact when you were hit with that attack?"

Torey remembered it. The bright, flashing light, the tearing of his clothing, the tearing of his skin... "No. I could not have done it myself." He showed Roy his hand. The injuries extended from his knuckles to well beyond his wrist. "This is not the work of a human."

Roy grew skeptical. "Can you safely say that it _was _Tyran's monster?"

He narrowed his eyes. "I don't to think so, but it's... the only reason that I've seen." He deactivated his disk, letting his monster and card disappear. He gripped the back of his hand. "Come on, let's head to the infirmary."

"...Right."

As the Slifer pair arrived at the place of refuge, they sat down on the cot and the nearby chair. Roy sought to ask another question. "Say, Adams, have you ever lost before?"

"Not like this. He had total control for the most part. I couldn't get around it. Not to mention, that monster of his..." He trailed off.

"What about it?" Roy encouraged.

Torey hesitated. "I don't know. There was... a familiarity about it. Something felt very nearby when I was hit with that attack. Like, it was alive. Not just through the hologram, but alive!" He clutched his head. "I've never... imagined something like this. Something living, like this..." He heard a scratching sound, like a flint against something hard. His eye twitched. "Something like this wracks at my head."

Roy narrowed his own eyes at his companion. "You sound like you're hallucinating right now, you know."

"I know. That's why I'm afraid."

"...Then you can't just ignore it?"

"Roy!" Torey stood sharply, pointing at his untreated injury. "I can't _ignore _this! This is something I can't get around just by pretending it never happened! _This,_" he noted, spirited in his indication, "is not a product of my imagination!"

Roy began waving his hands. "Just calm down! You're going to start bleeding like mad if you get too excited! You're missing a lot of skin!"

Just then, the nurse walked in. "Mister Adams! Sit down!" She barked. "The more excited you are, the more your wounds will bleed out!"

"Yes, miss..." Torey uttered dejectedly. The nurse then began applying antiseptic in preparation for stitches.

As she was working, she administered a bit of anesthesia and asked, "Though I wonder, how in the world did you get those cuts?"

"We were running through the woods in the northwest, and... he ran past a lot of sharp branches," Roy interjected. He glanced at Torey to ensure he would remain quiet. "It's a good thing it didn't hit very many places."

"I see," she replied. "Well, the doctor should be here shortly to stitch you up. Just don't be too rough with yourself from now on." She briskly left the premises.

"Why the hell did you lie?" Torey growled.

"Would she have believed you?"

Torey did not answer. He merely glared.

"Look, Adams, the situation is fishy enough as it is. That Tyran guy looks like he's high-ranking. No sense getting him in trouble so early in the game--we can't prove that he's the cause."

"So what? The more fishy it is, the more I should get it looked at!"

"Shut your face, Torey." Roy said sternly. "If this isn't 'natural' as you say, then we have to bring it to the higher ups, not the medical junkies. They won't know why this is happening."

Torey paused awhile, gripping his wounds. "Fine, but I'm telling the truth."

"Fine by me."

As the doctor entered, the duo remained silent. "Mister Adams, I hope you've learned your lesson today."

"Yes sir."

As the doctor began working, he idly noted, "And no disk duels for a few weeks. I don't recommend drawing cards very harshly either. You have to go easy for a while. I'll write a notice for your instructors that you are not to duel."

Torey remained silent. Then faintly, "No... dueling?" he asked.

"No dueling."

As if Torey's day could get any worse.

After the operation, Torey saw it fit to not rest, and immediately head to the principal of the institution. Surely he would know.

Fortunately, the anesthesia still was firmly circulating his arm, as he had run into a number of objects and persons on the way. When he finally reached the door to Principal Kans' office, he noticed that Roy was striding slowly along the hall. "Come on, Roy."

"I'm coming, I'm coming," he replied.

Torey then pressed the intercom. "Principal Kans? This is Torey Adams. I have an urgent matter to discuss with you."

The reply came slowly, as if the man was hesitant. "**...What is it?**"

"It's about this island."

The next was quicker this time. "**...Come in.**"

The doors slid open.


	5. Here and Now

-~-~~-~

Chapter 5: Here and Now

-~-~~-~

"So, what was it you needed to speak about?" Principal Kans asked. The doors swiftly shut behind the pair.

"There's something strange happening on this island, Principal," Torey immediately stepped forward, gently resting his arms on the man's heavy oak desk. "I have just been heavily injured."

"I can see that," Kans noted.

Torey continued, "No, sir, you're missing my point. I was injured by a _hologram._"

When the word "hologram" was uttered, Kans' eye twitched. "A hologram, you say? Did this happen by chance?"

"No, sir--I admit, I was dueling one of the Obelisks, and his name is Tyran Sigurd." He briefly shuddered as he remembered the crazed expression. "He summoned Reshef the Dark Being, and when it attacked I received this." Torey indicated his stitched-up arm.

"Tyran, you say," Kans mused, rubbing his chin. "Well, he may be a bit of a snob, but I don't think he meant any true harm."

"Could have fooled me," Roy blurted out. "He and his cronie... what's-his-face."

"Vesper Rapwood, by any chance?" Kans offered.

Roy was confused. He then came to a realization, and then replied, "Yes. That guy."

Kans then began writing on the paper that was before him previously, scribbling something and then shoving it aside. "Well, I don't believe that either of them would have the capability of making their monsters corporeal. In fact, I refute it. Vesper's family is a successful bunch, thriving off of their ancestry. By chance, his family and the Sigurd family met through a business operation and have been around each other since." He glanced upward. "Vesper's family is a long line of duelists, and Tyran stems from a tobacco corporation. No relation to making duels... real."

Torey faltered and winced. "I mean no offense, sir, but... this injury is not something I can pass off as happenstance. There must be an explanation. I'd much appreciate it if you... kept looking into it."

The principal narrowed his eyes, then sighed. "Very well. Don't take any chances from here on, Torey."

"Understood, sir," Torey replied.

Once outside, there were several angry shouts. They all belonged to a certain cripple. "I can't believe it!" Torey growled as he kicked some dirt. Roy was alongside him. "The highest ranked person on the island doesn't know anything! These things aren't supposed to cause physical harm!"

"Well, if he doesn't know anything, it's probably not something he's in control of. It's best to put it aside, Adams."

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered. "I guess we missed today's classes."

"Yeah."

"..."

"Wanna find Tercia?"

"Alright."

The girl in question had since left her classes, without her two newest female companions in tow. She casually walked without a specific direction, but if one had to say, she headed for the dormitory. Along the way she passed several familiar faces, all of whom avoided her gaze.

One of the faces was framed by black icicles. Teal eyes pierced grey orbs, and not a word was spoken. Rei stopped, hands resting in his pockets. His sleeves draped over his pants.

"Good day," Tercia said idly.

"...Good day," came the reply. It was hushed, deep, and almost inaudible. He continued onward.

When Rei was out of earshot, Tercia turned her head and also continued in her direction. "So he _does _speak."

Elsewhere, a pair of blonde-haired girls came into Roy's view. "Hey, that's something you don't see everyday."

"What?"

"Those two," Roy pointed. "One has short hair, the other has long hair."

Torey squinted. "Hmm. I could barely see them, how can you?"

"I have an eye for beauty."

"What?"

"You don't like beauty?"

"I don't know. I wouldn't know... unless we were there."

"Oh, so you're interested?" Roy teased.

"I never said that."

"Oh, so you don't want to talk to girls?"

"...I also never said that." Torey grumbled. _What the heck, man..._

Roy smirked. "Well, let's go see, then." Then carelessly and in mostly a joking manner he added, "Homo."

A fairly short distance from the Ra Yellow Girls' Dormitory there was a pair of girls sharing idle conversation beneath a leafless tree. "Oh dear, there's quite a wind today," the girl with waist-long blonde hair complained. Her voice carried a British accent. She toyed with her pure golden tresses as they flowed with the current of air.

"Maybe if your hair wasn't so long it wouldn't be a problem, Robyn," her companion retorted. She had a similar accent, but it was much less pronounced. Her darker blonde hair fell to her shoulders. As the wind blew the locks wildly tossed about. The two stood beneath a tree, both wearing yellow blazers with white trim. The darker-haired one had sleeves cut off at the shoulder and a skirt that reached down to her knees, while the longer-haired Ra had full-length sleeves and a slightly less modest skirt.

"Janis, my dear sister, please." There was a faint difference in their heights, and Robyn was the shorter of the two. "I believe we have company."

Janis turned around, squinting to see the twin redcoats. "Just like the olden days... though I doubt they're here to salute."

"Ever the witty one."

Roy approached, waving an arm. "Hello there!"

"Hello," Janis politely replied. _He looks like he's here to... pick one of us up. Or both._

Robyn caught her sister briefly narrow her eyes, so she decided to interject. "What business do you have here at the Ra dormitory?"

"You aren't going to make fun of us for being Slifers, are you?" Torey asked, the tiniest trace of poison in his voice.

"Why, heavens no!" Robyn said, quite surprised. "We just do not generally see redcoats here."

"Yeah, they're usually flocking around their own nests, or hovering like vultures near the Obelisks," Janis added.

Roy twitched. "Hey, that's not cool. We are _not _like, stupid birds."

Janis in kind twitched. "_What _did you call birds?"

"What?"

"You called them stupid, didn't you?"

Torey raised his good hand. "Cut it out, Roy. You're going to get us in trouble..."

"Keep out of this, cripple!" Janis cut in. Turning to the fiery duelist, she pulled a disk out and set it on her arm. "I'll teach you to insult the avian race!"

Roy blinked. "...What?"

Torey grinned, slipping a disk onto Roy's arm. "Have fun, _Flagrun._"

Catching on, Roy meekly asked, "Uhm... duel?"

"Now you're getting it," Janis muttered.

Janis: 4000

Roy: 4000

"I'll start it off," Janis said as she drew. "Flying Kamakiri #1, in attack mode." A humanoid dragonfly flew in, landing on the ground with a light thud. (4/1400/900)

"I thought you played birds..." Roy deadpanned. He scratched his head.

"Shut it. You'll see what I'll do." She played a card facedown. "Your turn."

Roy drew. "I summon Solar Flare Dragon in attack mode!" In a flurry of flames, a serpent emerged, bearing molten scales and harsh black horns. "And now I attack with Firestorm Fury!" He called out.

"I activate Enchanted Javelin!" Janis retorted. "This gives me lifepoints equal to the attack of your monster!" Even as her points were raised, the attack washed over her insect, scorching it away.

"Crud!"

Janis: 5400

Roy: 4000

"And now I'll activate my insect's effect, letting me special summon a wind monster from my deck! So come forth, Hunter Owl!" A humanoid owl with a scythe-like weapon and piercing eyes emerged in a flurry of brown feathers. (4/1000/900)

"Pretty puny. My dragon's still stronger."

"You'd like to think so, wouldn't you," Janis shot back as her owl increased in power. (4/1500/900) "My owl gains five hundred attack points for every wind monster on the field!"

"Even so, it just matches my dragon," Roy insisted.

"Shut your face, boy!"

"...Then I'll just leave this little thing here and call it a turn," Roy added as his dragon spat an ember at the opponent.

"Gross."

Janis: 4900

Roy: 4000

"Well, how the hell did that happen?" Janis asked harshly.

"At the end of each my turns, Solar Flare spits at you. I think you saw that enough."

Janis rolled her eyes in a huff. "_Yes, _so it just gives me five hundred points of direct damage while you sit on your butt?"

"Well, if you like my butt, that's fine. But the time for that's later. Duel now," Roy teased.

That set Janis off like a bomb. Her fist shuddered, and vessels pulsed from her forehead. "It's things like that that piss me off so much about men!" she angrily declared.

Meanwhile, Torey and Robyn had walked off to watch their duel at a distance. "Well, your friend has certainly outdone himself. Janis does not usually get _this _angry during a duel."

"She doesn't like jokesters, does she?"

"Case in point, no," Robyn quickly replied. "Well, maybe it is just him."

"What's _that _supposed to mean?"

Robyn chuckled. "Exactly what I said. Oh, look. She has summoned Simorgh."

True to her word, Janis had completely leveled Roy's field. His Solar Flare Dragon had been eliminated and his facedown was wasted. He was completely defenseless. On his opponent's field stood a massive green bird. Its wing feathers were translucent, allowing Roy to see the angry girl behind it. Its golden tail feathers fluttered behind it, while the bird's feet spaced themselves apart, its metallic green bangles shifting uncomfortably. Atop its head stood a red and gold crown, symbolizing the other part of its name--the Bird of Divinity.

"So... I'm going to let Negate Attack keep me safe, for the moment."

"Your words exactly," Janis licked her lips as she lay two cards facedown. "And I'll end _my _turn, allowing Simorgh to inflict one thousand points of damage to you directly!" A green ring hovering behind Simorgh began to lift itself up and rotate. It shot to the center of the area, propelling a vortex-like wind towards both Janis and Roy. The vortex heading towards Janis dissipated, however the same wind aimed at Roy was not as kind, forcing the red-head to cover his face from the harsh spiral of wind.

Janis: 4900

Roy: 3000

"Hey, that's just like my Solar Flare Dragon's effect!" Roy exclaimed.

Seething, Janis muttered, "Do not even _dare _compare your little _worm _to my grand bird. There is hardly room for comparison."

A little put-down by this remark, Roy sighed. "Look, I don't know _what _I did to upset you, but I don't think whatever I did was so wrong."

"You insulted my birds. That''s more than a reason to put you in your place."

"I'm sorry?"

"No apologies! I will not spare you!" Janis' pride had apparently been affronted, and perhaps simply hearing a certain string of words activated an anger point in her, but Roy had no leads in his mind. He did something to anger her, and he had no idea what that something could be. "Boys like you are--"

"Boys like me are what? Scum of the earth? Half-respectable pieces of trash?" Roy half-mocked.

Janis was already fuming, yet the latest verbal exchange had left her near her peak. "You're proving it just now!"

"Like hell if I see how. All I'm doing is dueling."

"Then you're obviously blind. I've had enough of you and your idiocy. Go on, take your next card. It won't matter." Janis crossed her arms.

Roy drew. "As you wish." _Come on... _"Shit. I'll play UFO Turtle in defense mode!" A green turtle with wrinkled features emerged from a small plume of fire. In place of a bony carapace, its shell was metallic and much like the famed spacecrafts of its namesake. It then pulled itself into its shell, leaving two little yellow dots for eyes to be seen from outside. (4/1400/1200) "Two facedown cards, and it's your turn."

Janis smirked. "A puny turtle... what a shame. You also have an unimpressive poker face." She drew, her grin still lighting up her features. "I'll play Monster Reborn to revive my Hunter Owl, summon another Hunter Owl, and let both of them raise their attack scores to twenty-five hundred each!" A twin flurry of brown feathers erupted on either side of Simorgh, and swirling winds were made visible around each of their weapons. (4/2500/900)

"Oh, hell... that's a no. Go, Spellbinding Circle!" A mystic symbol appeared beneath Simorgh, halting its movement with ropes made of light. It looked this way and that, but was fiercely brought to the ground. "With this, you can't attack with or change the position of whatever it binds." He breathed a sigh of relief.

"A small obstacle. My other birds, however, have no such restriction. Go, attack his ridiculous turtle! Twin Cutting Whirlwind!" Both owls began spinning in place, and the swirling winds were made into vicious cyclones. Both rose up, and one barreled down into the turtle, obliterating it.

Roy grunted. "I'll activate my turtle's effect, letting me summon a fire monster from my deck that has 1500 attack points or lower! I choose another UFO Turtle!" Another metallic shell emerged, though the turtle's features were exposed.

"And for the second strike! Cutting Whirlwind!" The other owl drilled through the air like a missile and flew past the turtle. Despite its hard appearance, it was sliced into pieces as if it were paper.

Janis: 4900

Roy: 1900

"I'll summon Woodborg Inpachi with that last turtle! Be my safeguard and rise!" On command, the giant tree-like machine on treads emerged from a bright light. It buzzed and whirred, and though it stood tall and mighty above the trio of winged beasts before it, it hardly felt imposing. A blocky "18" was emblazoned on its trunk. (5/500/2500)

"Fine. I'll end my turn."

_Heart of the freaking cards, man... heart of the _freaking _cards... _"Yes! Alright, time to pull out _my _bird! Not as cool as yours, but... what can you do? I summon Hand of Nephthys!" (/2/600/600) The woman with the golden headdress emerged in a plume of red-orange feathers.

"Are you insulting me _again?!_" Janis shrieked. She angrily pointed at Roy's monster, as if accusing him of murder. "That's your bird? She just has a stupid helmet that _looks _like a bird!"

Roy sweatdropped and cried a little on the inside. "Lady, I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not done, and _you _need a chill pill. I'll use my Hand's effect," he chuckled, "and offer Woodborg to summon my Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys!"

_The seven who are gathered..._

Time seemed to stop. Roy, in a daze, heard the voice again.

_The seven._

"What?"

"I'm waiting!" Janis yelled.

"I'm confused. What was I doing?"

"Summon your phoenix already!"

Roy's head was still hazy. He snapped his fingers, as if it were by instinct. Within a great conflagration, his golden bird emerged. Embers littered the ground around it in a circle, reminiscent of a nest. It shrieked a heavenly shriek, not unlike Simorgh in supposed "divinity."

With one look at the golden bird, Janis covered her mouth. She began laughing.

"What's so funny?" Roy asked, confused moreso than earlier.

"Its wings..." She managed to utter. "Its wings..."

Concerned now, he looked to his winged creature. Its wings seemed perfectly fine--its fiery plumage at its full growth, both appendages flapping to keep it aloft... nothing seemed out of the ordinary. "I see nothing wrong."

"Look where they're attached!" She couldn't help herself anymore, and her unbridled laughter rushed out like water from a breaking dam. "They're attached at its butt!"

"What?" He looked again. He stared hard. The wings indeed were attached at its hips... which could very well be close to its anus. One could never tell with Duel Monsters. "Huh. I never noticed that before..."

"Butt-wings!" She continued laughing up a storm. Tears could be seen peeking from the edges of her closed eyes.

Torey began laughing as well. "I never thought of it! Your strongest monster is a laughing stock, Flagrun!"

Robyn couldn't help herself either, though she maintained some modesty by successfully covering her mouth.

"...Is it really that bad?" Roy asked, very concerned. Whether it be for his pride, his phoenix' pride, or the abdomens of those around him, only he would know.

"No, but it sure as hell is hilarious!" Janis blurted.

"Man, I really am glad mine are all gadgets and gizmos. I would never be able to hold onto sanity if I knew my monster was like that!" Torey managed.

Roy's phoenix seemingly took offense, crossing its feminine arms and folding its burning wings behind it. It softly landed, and disappeared. His duel disk then beeped, signaling an automatic forfeit.

"What the shit?"Roy barked. "Even if you're _mad, _you... ugh, nevermind. My phoenix ended this duel for me..."

"Aww, the ugly duckling went to go hide in its egg? That's so precious!" Janis cooed. Her birds disappeared as well. She sighed. "Sorry, kiddo. I didn't mean to explode on you like that. I forgive you, since you gave me a great laugh." She walked over and began roughly patting his back. "I forsee great things in your future! All of them involve embarrassment and idiocy!"

The students of Ra and Slifer shared a collective laugh, even the slighted Roy.


	6. Samurai Swarm

-~-~~-~

Chapter Six: Samurai Swarm

-~-~~-~

Beyond the scope of dueling, the students of Duel Academy fell victim to the pains and labors of general schooling. Obviously, some students fared better than others in either category--the Slifer Trio of Torey, Tercia, and Roy are no exceptions. Torey, with less of an emphasis on his dueling (and with good reason), could concentrate on his schoolwork more. That isn't to say his dueling had lessened over time, but certainly his grades were substantially higher than if he focused on the cards. Tercia found herself at the top of the Slifer class. Her grades and dueling ability were unmatched in the realm of the Red, and it was merely her preference that she remained in Slifer. Over the past months she had dueled a number of Ra duelists, including Christian Tarko, the top of Ra Yellow, several times, coming close to a win each time.

Roy, for all of his famed dueling pride, was already notorious for having pitiful marks in the school's grading system. If a student's overall grade was determined solely by dueling, then Roy's would be _substantially _higher. As that is not the case, the boy's poor grade dropped to rock bottom.

Being the bottom of the bottom rung is not very exciting.

"Hey, slacker! Glad to see you're up and running! Oh, did you know? Professor Silvana's having a test today on spell cards! Hope you don't fail!" a fellow student teased earlier in the week.

"Roy! Good luck can't save you today!" a second duly noted on that same day.

"Keep the fire burning.. 'cause that's all that you'll have after this test!" a third had mocked the morning before.

Roy kept looking forward to the chalkboard. He knew the insults, those inscribed above and many others. He knew his grades were poor. He just couldn't study worth a penny. It certainly didn't help that his mind was occupied with what happened nearly two months ago. Torey's injury (which had substantially healed and is now not much more than a long scar) and his duel with Janis kept his mind ticking and inattentive to class. However, since those two occurences, there had been no other incidents. None of his monsters complained or made any note of a soul or mind of its own. It was like they were simply dreaming a very real dream.

_Dreams do not last for this long, _Roy thought. _Dreams end the morning after. Dreams die. This is _not _a dream. _He chewed anxiously on his pencil and tapped his blank notebook.

The bell rang for class to end.

"Come on, Roy. Let's grab something to eat," Torey said.

Still lost in thought, Flagrun slowly replied, "Sure."

"You coming, Tercia?" Torey asked.

"Very well."

After lunch, the three rummaged through the various cards and sealed packs of the card shop. Home to not only the cards themselves, but also various other items and things necessary for school. Needless to say, most of the island's inhabitants were predominantly there for card purchases. At the very least, if not for the drive to buy new cards, the academy's tuition would skyrocket.

Torey looked over the cards, eyeing a few in particular. Noting the prices, he grinned, fishing out a wad of cash from his pocket. "I'll have those two," he said to the clerk. She nodded and opened the compartment.

Tercia's eyes glossed over a number of things, including some obscure packs of cards, released nowhere else but the island. She picked up a pair, and numbered off something in her head using her fingers. Her lips moved without noise. Then like Torey, she pulled a crisp bill from within her red jacket, sliding it onto the counter.

Roy stood in silence. He quickly scanned the available pieces, and instead walked off to the textbook area.

Torey took immediate notice. "I never took you for the bookish type, Flagrun."

"I'm not," he deftly replied. He scanned the history section.

"Come to think of it," Torey continued, "You've been awful quiet these days. Normally you complain about everything whenever you got the chance. Lately you've just... hushed up."

The red-headed duelist knelt down and rummaged through immense volumes with determination in his eyes.

Of this, Tercia raised an eyebrow. In a curious tone, she asked, "Roy, you _hate _schooling in every degree. History is your absolute worst subject. I have not gone more than a day without hearing you trifle away about either of them--why are you looking through that section?" With each passing sentence, Roy sunk deeper and deeper into his book, as if heavy block arrows were embedding themselves into him to note his realization.

"Maybe I'm having a change of heart, Princess," he nonchalantly noted.

"Knowing you, that is very unlikely."

Roy dropped the book to a curious page, stood, and faced Tercia with mere inches to spare between their faces. "Look here, Princess. Didn't it bother you a month or so back that--"

"Two months," Torey corrected.

Rolling his eyes, Roy continued. "That things were real? Things caused _real _damage?" He fished out his phoenix card. "That this bird flew the coop when I dueled Janis?"

"What is your point?" Tercia asked.

"My point," Roy pointed down at the book he threw down, "is that they just.. stopped happening!"

Torey, in the meantime had situated himself above the book, studying it.

"And that is good, is it not?" Tercia drolled. "What could have possibly become a terrible disaster was somehow avoided. Is this not good?"

"It's good, but hell, it's not enough! Why? Because this island is seriously scaring the heck out of me! A couple nights ago, these.. creepy monsters kept poking me in my sleep." He shivered. "They were ugly... and small."

Tercia crossed her arms and sighed. "Roy, I will be honest with you. I was curious as well. My duel with Aidan showed me something of that 'real' factor you have been babbling about. However, since this has ceased occurring, it should not be of concern."

"And why not? It's definitely a concern to me! I don't want to have to relive..." Roy stopped.

_Fire. Burning._

_Burn._

_Home? Burn._

"Relive?" Tercia parroted.

"No, it's nothing."

"Not this again, Flagrun," Torey chimed in. He flipped through a few pages, then added, "The last time you were like this you didn't say anything about whatever it was, and I distracted you with exploding penguins."

Roy smirked. "Fair enough, but it's not going to distract me again. Especially not now."

Meanwhile, in a different part of the facility, Principal Kans was doing some rummaging of his own. His office space, while somewhat devoid of lavish furnishings, had enough books to manage his own personal library. Several coins seemed to be scattered wherever one decided to look. Kans thumbed through a particular shelf, and pulled on a particular spine. It had no title. Kans then stepped back, allowing the shelf to advance and slide aside. Behind the shelf lay a plethora of books, all in shelves of varying arrangement and precariously tall heights.

As Kans walked through the halls of inscribed knowledge, he glanced from side to side. A month and a half ago he had filed a report of Torey Adams' mysterious injury. Though beyond that incident there had been no other reports, there had been more quiet notifications from his head of security, Gran Ezekiel.

October 16, three students missing reported as missing: one from each dormitory.

Kans reached another particular shelf, and pulled on a thick, leather-bound spine. After quickly scanning its cover, he flipped through the volume's aged, stained pages.

"I really didn't want this to happen so soon in the year."

In the grand halls of Obelisk Blue, nothing was amiss. It was generally quiet, yet occasional chatter from fellow Obelisk students managed to pierce the silence every now and then. In one room, April Afton and Reun Alvea comfortably sat across from one another, she on the windowsill, he on the bed. They conversed, oblivious of the ominous occurrences of the island.

"Really? I never would have guessed that Tarko would have such a hard time with a deck like that," Reun mused.

April nodded. "I was surprised, too. That girl... what was her name? Theresa?"

"I think it's Tercia. Tercia Tessana."

"Right. Have you made headway with Rei? He's been off and about more than usual," April noted.

Reun plopped himself down onto the bed, resting his head on top of his hands. "You know him better than I do."

"Yeah, but... he doesn't tell me things," April pleaded.

Reun lifted himself up, just so he could make eye contact. "And, pray tell, what makes you think that he tells _me _things?"

"Women's intuition."

"Well, you'd better get it fixed," he suggested, coming back down. "Either that or change your gender. 'Cause it's not been working for you."

Vessels pulsed in both April's fist and forehead. "I'll forgo hitting you right now... because I know that's true."

"Wonderful. Now I can plague you about your gender _all_ the ti--" Reun was silenced by a fist.

"Just keep testing me, Reun. Just keep testing me..."

The boy in question coughed, but managed to choke out a reply. "Sorry, sorry..." He rubbed his abdomen.

"Seriously, though. Have you heard from him?"

Reun scratched his rust-covered head. "Sorry, again. I haven't. He's about as elusive as a cockroach."

"And hardly as disgusting. He cleans up well."

"He must be a monk, or something."

"Now, we shouldn't be talking about him like that... though I don't think you're far from the mark."

At one of the isolated duel arenas in the yellow dome towering above the facility, a bulky young man in a yellow blazer stood opposite a certain pink-haired girl. His clothing pressed tightly against his tanned skin, revealing unsightly bulges and unnecessary exposure of a protruding midriff. He was mounted on stocky legs, and his beefy arms betrayed little hint of true muscleclature. The bulges of skin that were his cheeks jiggled with each display of chewing. This countenance was set in a notably round face, with short, messy black hair and a high forehead. A duel disk was fastened around his wrists.

"So this is Christian Tarko, huh," Roy mused.

"The famed best in Ra Yellow, and also the biggest dork," Torey whispered.

Roy whispered back, "I heard he smuggles food into his room and keeps a stash."

"That explains his girth."

Torey and Roy sat in the closest seats. The entire arrangement was much like a colosseum, with seats arranged in ascending concentric circles. In the center was a pit-like area, with a raised portion for duelists to stand and play their cards. This style was replicated in each of the towers.

Tercia had her disk ready as well. "I do not understand why you challenge me so often. It becomes pointless once you repeatedly defeat me."

"So what?" the heavier boy remarked. His voice was large and thick, reminiscent of his form. "I feel like dueling you. You're the top of Slifer, I'm the top of Ra."

"Your reasoning falls on deaf ears," Tercia droned.

The boy shook his head. "We're near the top of the game. We should duel to keep each other sharp."

Tercia narrowed her eyes. "I will not repeat myself."

"Then let's go."

"If that is your wish."

They each drew their opening hand of five cards. "Duel!" they cried.

Christian: 4000

Tercia: 4000

"I'll start," Christian stated as he drew a sixth card, "with The Six Samurai - Irou in attack mode!" A tall swordsman with long, flowing, tattered clothing and long black hair emerged from a flash of light. He wore a visor, and his purplish armor covered only his left arm and his torso. He shouldered his weapon, a long, black katana. (4/1700/1200) "I'll also lay a facedown card and end my turn."

Tercia drew, lightly examining her cards. "I summon Masked Dragon in defense mode." A red and white dragon with a long neck and tail rose from the ground. It seemed to be wearing a bony mask, and its beady white eyes peered through it as it mindlessly curled up. (3/1400/1100) "I end my turn."

"That's a terrible misplay," Christian noted, shaking his head. "You should have put something in your backfield!"

"It is _your _turn now, Christian."

The boy narrowed his eyes at her. "Very well, Miss Tessana. Now I summon Shien's Footsoldier in attack mode!" A monkey in a bit of samurai regalia jumped from the ground, wielding a spear. It hopped around with a pretentious grin. (2/700/300) "Now, attack, Irou! Hell Helm Splitter!" Christian called out, as his monster sprang into the air, gripping his blade with both hands. As he came crashing down, his sword sliced cleanly through the dragon. After a second, the dragon fell into two, then an infinite amount of pieces as it shattered.

"And now I activate my Masked Dragon's effect, allowing me to summon a dragon-type monster from my deck, such as my Red-Eyes Black Chick in attack mode." The familiar infant form of the red-eyed beast peered out from its crimson egg. (1/800/500)

"Then I set one card, activate Swiftstrike Armor, and end my turn," Christian concluded. As the girl drew a card, Christian flipped up a card. "Not so fast! I activate Mind Crush!"

"I beg your pardon?"

"It allows me to declare one card name, and if it's in your hand, it's discarded! So I name the Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

Tercia swiveled her wrist, displaying each of the five cards that were in hand. Holographic images of Summoner's Art, Foolish Burial, Birthright, Dragon's Mirror, and Fusion Sage appeared before Christian. Obviously, none of them was the card in question. "Why would you do that?"

"Bugger," Christian said, deflating as he discarded a card. "It's part of the game. Prediction... control..." he gestured. "You have to be wary of anything and everything. I had a feeling that you would immediately have the dragon in your hand, if you pulled out the chick first."

Tercia furrowed her brow. "I do not understand. You simply... play as if you were a machine?"

"That's how I win, yeah."

"How questionable. Then we will simply continue." She placed a card into a slot. "I activate Summoner's Art, which lets me search for a level five or higher normal monster from my deck, like my Red-Eyes Black Dragon, and add it to my hand." She showed Christian the card. "I'll now use my chick's effect, allowing me to summon the Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" The chick broke free of the egg, and encased itself in a cocoon of red and black fire. It expanded, whirled, and smoldered. The dragon's pointy face broke through the sphere, and soon violently wriggled the rest of its body free. (7/2400/2000) It screeched, filling the arena with its bird-like voice.

Christian nodded. "Well-played, well-played."

Tercia continued. "Now I play Foolish Burial, sending Meteor Dragon to the graveyard from my deck." An apparition of the turtle-like dragon appeared and flew into the open slot of the graveyard. "Behold, Dragon's Mirror," she declared, inserting the card into a slot. "I can now remove the Red-Eyes Black Dragon from my field and the Meteor Dragon from my grave to fuse them together." The mirror that appeared in the card appeared on the field, rising to the height of a small house. The two dragons hovered in front of it, and flew inside. There, the mirror showed only darkness. Its surface rippled, and the familiar purple leg emerged. The fissures in its molten appearance crackled with heat, as a similar arm pulled at the edges of the mirror from within. Soon, the whole monster appeared, grinning down at Irou and the monkey with a maw of shining, knifelike fangs. Its beady white eyes hinted at nothing. "Behold... the Meteor Black Dragon." (8/3500/2000)

"Indeed, well-played!" Christian said, clapping his hands.

From the sidelines, Torey furrowed his brow. "I'm guessing he's just really sportsmanlike today...?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," Roy replied.

"Attack, with Incinerator Meteor!" Tercia commanded. The dragon complied, breathing out a hailstorm of molten rocks and red flame at the tiny monkey. It did nothing to save itself, and disappeared within an instant.

Christian: 1200

Tercia: 4000

"Still in it," Christian grunted. "I activate my Footsoldier's effect, allowing me to summon a level 3 or lower Six Samurai monster from my deck! I choose The Six Samurai - Kamon!" In a flash of light, a scruffy man with dynamite sticks as armor appeared. he held a free stick in his hand, and was clearly about to light it. He grinned. (3/1500/1000)

"I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Christian drew. "And mine begins! With this, the effect of Swiftstrike Armor! Go, The Six Samurai - Zanji!" With another flash of light, a brown armored warrior with a halberd appeared. His helmet had two flanges atop it, mimicking crests. He held his weapon in both hands, aiming its point at the molten dragon. (4/1800/1300) "Now I summon The Six Samurai - Yariza in attack mode!" A black armored warrior rose alongside his brethren. He concealed his face with a short cloth, as his helmet rose up to a point. His weapon was a spear, with one end attached to a cord. (3/1000/600) "And for the final touch!" Christian announced. He slapped a card into the last slot for monsters. "I summon my trump card! Great Shogun Shien!" A purple cape flourished in the windless environment, as crimson armor adorned a muscled figure. A fire was patterned on the breastplate, along with a similarly shaped metal plate that was fashioned onto the front of the helmet. His eyes were concealed beneath the helmet, allowing his fiery red eyes to pierce the perceived darkness. He held his katana aloft, also pointing it at the grand beast. (7/2500/2400)

"Overextending? I am afraid you will not succeed, no matter what card you play."

Christian narrowed his eyes. "Let me be the judge of that! I play the spell Rush Recklessly! This raises the attack of Zanji by 700 points!" (4/2500/1300)

"Why that monster? You would be short several attack points," Tercia pointed out.

"Did you forget? Zanji can destroy _any _monster it attacks when another Samurai is on the field!"

Tercia shook her head. "I have not forgotten. I believe _you _have forgotten something."

"Let me be the judge of that! You will fall to the blazing power of feudal Japan!" Christian cried. He almost sounded delirious. "Zanji, attack with Heaven Cutting Slash!" The warrior dashed towards the beast, halberd extended. As the weapon impaled the dragon's hide, it retaliated in full fiery force. Kamon, the dynamite wielder, jumped in front of the oncoming flames and rocks, exploding in the process. Zanji remained unharmed.

Christian: 200

Tercia: 4000

"Don't forget, my Samurais can sacrifice themselves to save each other! And now Zanji's effect activates! Your dragon goes to the grave!" As if it were cued, Zanji muscled his arms upward, slicing through the dragon's belly. It roared its sickly roar and collapsed to the ground. A mere moment later, and it shattered. "Now, Great Shogun, att--"

A card flipped up on Tercia's field. "I activate Birthright." From the earth below, the dragon hologram erupted upward. Its head protruded, earning it a sharklike appearance for but a moment. As it forced its meaty, crusty limbs through, it roared in anger. (8/3500/2000)

"I-I... uh... end my turn." Then, as if in realization, he declared, "No, wait! Yariza! Attack with Swift Spear Strike!" As the command was issued, the black-armored warrior thrust his weapon and it vaulted over the giant dragon--impaling Tercia straight in the gut. She cringed at the holographic pain.

Christian: 200

Tercia: 3000

"You nearly forgot. You were never this careless in our earlier duels, Tarko."

"I slipped, is all!" the boy protested.

Tercia found her moment to strike. "Slipped on what? Your tongue? Or perhaps fallen pride?"

Christian had no response.

"Nothing to say?" She waited a beat. "Then this duel is over. Your hand is exhausted, your back field is nearly empty..." Tercia counted on two fingers. "Meteor Black Dragon, attack Yariza with Incinerator Meteor!" The dragon sharply inhaled, paused, and exhaled with mighty force a stream of molten rock, ashes, and harsh sparks. Yariza would have had a better chance of surviving in hell.

Christian: 0

Tercia: 3000

Christian advanced upon Tercia. His bulk shivered with each step, and his overwhelming presence found himself in front of Tercia. "I have a proposition for you."


	7. The Proverbial Plank

-~-~~-~

Chapter Seven: The Proverbial Plank

-~-~~-~

"A proposition?" Tercia parroted. She blinked as her monster disappeared along with Christian's mass of japanese soldiers. "What do you mean?"

Christian was silent. A bead of sweat began forming on his temple, and his extremities began shifting nervously. Tercia waited. Roy waited. Torey waited.

The silence was deafening.

There was an ethereal voice chiming among those present.

_Two of the seven._

_Seven who are gathered._

Tercia did not take notice. "Well?" She asked, tapping her foot.

Christian heard the voice. "Didn't you hear that?" Fear rose in his throat.

Scowling now, Tercia began to turn on her heel. "If you have nothing to say, then I am leaving."

"Wait, please!" Christian began as he started towards Tercia's retreating figure. He tripped and fell, allowing his flab to sprawl and hug the arena floor.

"Disgusting," Roy said.

"Ick," Torey added, covering his mouth.

_Come, _the voice continued.

This time, Roy heard it too. "What?" He looked around. "Adams, did you hear that?"

"Hear what? I'm kind of fixated on that... uh, thing. Down _there,_" Torey replied.

"No, I'm serious. There's something here..." Roy insisted.

Down on the arena floor, Christian hastily attempted to push himself up. In between grunts and groans, he managed to squeak out these words: "Please go out with me!"

Tercia froze. Torey continued gawking. Roy stopped complaining. Somewhere on the island, a tumbleweed rolled with the howling wind. Time stood still, allowing the four present to appreciate the awe-inspiring awkward silence. Painful, biting silence continued to fill the air. Even the ethereal voice seemed to show respect to the audacity of the request. Tercia's head began to turn slowly. Christian forced himself to his feet, attempting to appear as confident as he could.

"I will give you my answer... if you can explain yourself," Tercia said dryly. Her voice sounded strained.

Christian gulped. Words tried to find their way out of his throat, but none escaped that vile pit. He stuttered a couple personal pronouns, but the pink-haired girl simply narrowed her gray eyes and turned back to leave.

"I will not repeat myself. Farewell."

"Okay, okay! I have an explanation..." Christian managed. Tercia stopped. "About a month ago, when I learned you became the top of Slifer and turned down acceptance into Ra, I became interested in you." When he saw that Tercia was not about to turn back around to face him or interrupt him, he continued, "I thought, why would someone not want to be in Ra Yellow? Everything about our dorm is logically better than where you lived."

Tercia sighed. "I have my reasons."

"And it's exactly what you just said that made me interested! You see, I came up with theories, ideas, and different thoughts as to why you would refuse! And then I thought... wait, maybe if I kept dueling her, she would feel the need to advance to get better experience!" He sounded wistful.

Torey interjected, asking, "But if that was the case, she wouldn't need to ascend. She, or anyone else for that matter can duel anyone she wants. Provided the other person agrees, they can duel. No one is strictly forbidden to duel people from different dorms. That'd make the Semester Duel Reports a lot more difficult."

"See, I predicted that! I calculated it! People are more naturally inclined to duel people their own color!" The boy made meaty, vivid gestures. "I figured that if I dueled you enough, you might want to keep dueling me." A long, careful pause. "And then... things would lead to another... maybe." He trailed off.

Tercia was silent. Hidden from Christian's view, she slowly closed her eyes. Then, just as slowly, two words exited her lips. "Thank you." They were quiet words, words that echoed in Christian's mind like Tocatta and Fugue playing across a cathedral's transept. As Tercia began walking again, Christian began to raise his hand towards her, as if to follow her just a little longer. She disappeared into the blackness of the exit. Torey and Roy jumped after her, running past the crestfallen samurai and following the girl.

Christian sighed. "One day... you'll have reason to look at me."

Later that day, the Slifer Trio found themselves in Torey and Roy's room. Tercia lay atop the highest bunk, idly chewing on a pencil. She coldly stared down at a math problem. Roy lay lazily on the middle bunk, playing with his PDA. Most used it like a cell phone, but obviously it had other functions. Suffice to say, island security measures monitored whatever anyone would use it for, short of invading privacy. Torey took the liberty of taking apart the room's alarm clock. He had several non-power tools invading his sleeping space, including a screwdriver, a wrench, and a small hammer.

"I've been meaning to ask, Adams," Roy began. "When did you start that tinkering business of yours?"

"A few years ago, actually," Torey replied. "I got into it the same time that I started with my Morphtronic deck." He secured a chip to some other part in the clock. "It's really interesting. Even clocks are amazing on the inside."

"I hope you don't become a surgeon."

Torey stopped his work. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I wonder," Roy mocked.

"Jerk."

Tercia continued in silence. Her pencil never hit the paper.

Peering out from the side of the bed, Torey then looked up at where he believed the girl to be. "How are things, Tercia?"

"Fine." The reply was quick, and it was muffled by a pencil.

Torey was keen. "You're still bothered about this morning, aren't you?"

Tercia continued in silence.

"If you didn't like the guy, why are you still out of it?"

Tercia paused. "As a boy, you would not understand."

Narrowing his eyes, Torey responded, "Well, look here. I'm _trying _to understand, as your friend." He clambered up the ladder to the top bunk, reaching Tercia's eye level. "Please."

Merely shifting her gaze, Tercia dropped her pencil to the open book. "Torey, as a boy, normally you would not be confessed to." She rested her chin on her palm. "This is not something I am used to. Boys avoided me in the past."

"You're not interested in that tub of lard, are you?"

Almost accusingly, she uttered a quick, "No." With that, she turned away from her friend.

Torey took a moment to think. "There's someone else, isn't there?"

Tercia continued looking at the wall in silence.

"Super emo Blake Arda? Equality-Man Aidan Angus? Who is it?" Roy drolled.

"I don't think you're helping, Flagrun," Torey shot back.

"And I doubt _you _are."

Torey sighed. "Well, if you ever need to or want to talk about this or anything else, feel free. We're both here."

"...Thank you."

Meanwhile, at the Ra Yellow Boy's dormitory there was a certain duelist feasting on a tub of ice cream on a bed.

"That isn't healthy," a yellow-jacketed boy said, his thin form draped across a plush armchair. His legs were covered in form-fitting black jeans, and a black t-shirt served to cover his torso. His voice was harsh, and every word sounded packed with poison. "Rooming with you is a drag."

"Shut up, you didn't get rejected today," Christian shot back, stuffing his face with a silver spoon. "You don't know what it's like."

The other boy brushed his long, scraggly black hair out of his eyes. It looked like it reached down to his shoulders as it fell down past the edge of the chair. "Look, Kotaru. You got rejected once. That's fine. But you know, you need to worry more about that awful flab. I'm surprised you're not dead from all that weight crushing you down."

"Shut up, Blake!" Christian's meaty fingers pounded the bed. "And stop calling me Kotaru! I am not an otaku!"

Blake gave Christian a deadpan stare. He then took a quick look around the room (after all, it belonged to both of them). The wall was adorned with various artifacts, posters, scrolls... all from the country of Japan. "The fact that you're using that word is proof enough, Kotaru. Either that, or somewhere down the road you were a really big pirate. And probably not a very good one, either. Cutlasses don't seem to be your style," he droned.

Christian attempted a glare, but a lot of the meat on his face got in the way. "I'll show you..."

"Show me what? Your awesome music-stealing abilities? Your big bones?" he mocked from his position. "I'm sure Aurion would love to know who's been clogging the internet around here."

Dropping the tub of ice cream on his bed, Christian clumsily reached for his duel disk. "I challenge you! I win, you drop the subject!"

Raising an eyebrow, Blake smirked. "And if I win?"

"I'll... go on a diet!"

This sent Blake into hysterics. "You have shitty stakes, Kotaru."

Outside, the two stood opposite each other. It was high noon, and Blake wore an indifferent expression to Christian's determined glare.

"Duel!" They cried.

Christian: 4000

Blake: 4000

"I'll begin!" Christian drew. "With this, Six Samurai United! More on its effect later," he continued as he inserted the card. "Now I summon The Six Samurai - Yaichi to the field in attack mode!" From a flash of light, a dark green-armored warrior with golden lines across it emerged. A large quiver was at his side, and a massive longbow was his weapon of choice. He gripped it firm. (3/1300/800) "Now I play Reasoning! You know the drill."

"Yeah, yeah... pick a level, you pick up cards until you find a monster... summon it if it isn't the level I called..." Blake sighed. "I pick five. I have a feeling that stupid Grandmaster is nearby."

Christian picked up the first card, and discarded it. He picked up a second card and revealed it to be Zanji. "Yes! I summon Zanji in attack mode!" The halberd-wielding warrior rose to the field next to Yaichi. (4/1800/1300) The Six Samurai United card began glowing brightly. "Now that I've summoned two Samurais to the field, I have two counters on my United card! I'll send it to the grave to grant me two more cards!" he announced emphatically, drawing his cards.

Blake smirked. "Not bad."

"I'll lay two cards facedown and end my turn."

"Then it's my draw." He paused to look at his new card. "I'll follow your lead, Kotaru. I'll play Card of Safe Return, which lets me draw a card when I summon something from my graveyard. Now I'll use Dark World Dealings, which allows us to draw a card, then discard one." As they both slipped a card into the graveyard, Blake smirked. "Look what went to the grave... Kahkki, Guerilla of Dark World. I'm sure you're familiar already." An apparition of a rotund fiend with a small knife appeared and pounced at Zanji. Yaichi jumped in front, firing arrows in vain. The ghost rammed into Yaichi, causing him to shatter.

"Whenever your Dark World monsters get thrown into the graveyard, they get special effects... I hate your Kahkki most of all," Christian growled. "Discard it and you get to blow up one of my monsters."

Blake smirked again. "You hate that one the most? What a waste. I'll show you what to _really _hate. I play Yami, a field spell!" The sky above them grew pitch-black, with pink lightning flashing across its cloudless sky. "Fiends and Spellcasters gain 200 in attack and defense in this world. It's a boost I'm sure Brron, Mad King of Dark World would appreciate." From a pool of darkness, a skeletal figure emerged. It wore a blue robe, with its sleeves flaring behind it like a cape. Its arms were bound by bronze chains, which flailed as wildly as its manic expression. (4/1800/400::4/2000/600) "Now attack, with Hell-Binding Chains!" The fiend cackled as its bindings twisted and flung themselves at Christian's only monster, Zanji.

"I activate Negate Attack!" Christian announced. "I'm ending your battle phase right here!"

As the fiend's chains flew, an ethereal barrier formed and stopped the chains in their tracks. "Fine. I lay a card facedown. You're up, Kotaru."

Christian thought hard. _He has one facedown. One monster. Two cards in hand. What are my options... _He examined the field before him. Blake stood across from him wearing a nondistinct expression. _I have Mind Crush. What could he have in his hand... _Christian stared at Blake's face. _Give me a hint..._

Blake began looking about the landscape in impatience. He glanced once at Christian's graveyard slot, then his own. _Take the bait._

"I activate Mind Crush!" the tubby duelist cried out. "I call Monster Reborn!"

Wearing that immaculate smirk, Blake displayed his remaining cards: Goldd, Wu-Lord of Dark World and Broww, Huntsman of Dark World. "Wrong."

Christian reluctantly dropped a card into the grave. "You tricked me... and now I have to discard due to Mind Crush's negative effect..."

"Part of the game, no?"

Growling, Christian drew. "I play the Armed Forces! This gives each warrior or spellcaster monster on my side of the field 200 points per monster!" Now grinning, "I now summon the Grandmaster of the Six Samurai!" A dark-armored warrior with an exposed, wrinkled head of flowing white hair jumped from a pool of light. His sword was sheathed, and the monster used it as a cane. (5/2100/800::5/2500/800) (4/1800/1300::4/2200/1300) "Now that I have two warriors out, both get 400 extra attack strength!"

"I'm not impressed."

"You will be!" Christian yelled. "Zanji, attack his fiend with Heaven Cutting Slash!" The brown-armored warrior charged forward with his glowing halberd, poised to strike the crazed fiend before it.

Blake flipped up a card, shouting, "Stop right there! I activate my own Negate Attack!" In like manner to before, Zanji's blade was stopped by a barrier.

"Tch," the larger boy uttered. "Your move."

"I draw!" Blake began. "I equip Brron with the spell Dark Energy, which increases a fiend-type monster's attack by 300 points!" (4/2000/600::4/2300/600) Brron then grasped a blue orb. "Now, attack! Hell-Binding Chains!" Casually throwing its bindings at Zanji, Brron cackled as the chains wrapped around the warrior unhindered. The monster struggled, but shouted as it was crushed and shattered.

Christian: 3900

Blake: 4000

"And now that Zanji's gone to the grave," Blake noted, "Grandmaster loses attack strength." As he said, the aged warrior's statistics dropped. (5/2500/800::5/2300/800) The gothic duelist grinned. "And now, Brron's special ability activates! Whenever he inflicts battle damage, I can discard a card to my grave!" The fiend's flailing chains knocked a card from Blake's hand and into the slot. As it did so, a massive golden axe erupted from the earth below, and as it was swung, the ground collapsed around a golden armored fiend with batlike wings. (5/2300/1400::5/2500/1600) "And don't forget, Card of Safe Return grants me a card when something is summoned from the grave, whileYami boosts my monster further. Now attack! Hell-Dividing Axe!" The great beast flapped its wings, soaring high above the Grandmaster. It gripped its weapon, careening down and slashing the warrior in half, just as it attempted to defend itself.

Christian: 3700

Blake: 4000

Christian grit his teeth. "Is that your best shot?"

Blake scoffed. "Hardly. It's your move."

"Very well!" He looked at his new card. "I play Pot of Greed! This grants me two more cards!"

"I know what the damn vase does, you idiot! Everyone knows!" Blake shouted angrily.

Christian sweated. "Well... it seemed like a good idea at the time. Anyway! I play Foolish Burial, allowing me to send Irou to the graveyard from my deck!" Christian then grinned. "I now summon The Six Samurai - Nisashi in attack mode!" From a flash of light, a green-armored warrior appeared. His muscles rippled from underneath their protective covering as his lean hands gripped a pair of swords--one shorter than the other. (4/1400/700::4/1600/700) "This Samurai can attack twice, provided there are other Samurai on the field..."

"Why bother mentioning it? I've played your deck dozens of times now."

"Because," Christian began, "you might need a reminder." He slipped a card down into a slot. "Your move."

Blake drew slowly. _You're planning something... like _that _card._ "I play Dark World Lightning, which lets me destroy a facedown if I toss a card after." A bolt struck Christian's card, which he immediately flipped up.

"Not so fast! I activate Backs to the Wall!" Just then, purple, yellow, and white columns of light emerged from a trio of symbols that appeared next to Nisashi. From those columns each of the fallen Samurai rose up. Irou with his long blade, Zanji with his halberd, and the Grandmaster with his own sheathed sword could now be seen alongside the green armored warrior. "If I pay life points until I reach 100, I can summon every Six Samurai from my graveyard!"

Christian: 100

Blake: 4000

"Let's not forget," Christian continued, "the Armed Forces boosts every warrior and spellcaster by 200 for everything of those types on my field!" Each of the warriors present--Nisashi (4/1600/700::4/2200/700), Irou (4/1700/1200::4/2500/1200), Zanji (4/1800/1300::4/2600/1300), and the Grandmaster of the Six Samurai (5/2100/800::5/2900/800) received considerable attack boosts.

"Overextending on your opponent's turn? You know that might be costly," Blake noted.

"I don't want to hear it!" Christian interjected. "Not from you!"

"Well, no matter. I'll toss Broww, Huntsman of Dark World to the grave for Lightning's effect. This lets me draw another card." He peered at it. "I'll set my last two and end my turn."

"Draw!" Christian announced. "Grandmaster, attack Goldd with Bushido Dragon Claw!" The older samurai's white hair flowed behind him as he meditated. In a flash, the warrior appeared just before the axe-wielding fiend. He slashed upward, only to be met with the fiend's golden axe. "What? Keep going!" The boy commanded.

"I activate Shrink!" Blake barked. "This halves your Grandmaster's original attack!"

Christian's eyes widened to the size of a dinner plate. "No!" His warrior's weathered body minimized to the size of a dinner plate. "You don't do that!" (5/2900/800::5/1850)

"No, Kotaru. You _don't _do that. Goldd, counterattack with Hell-Dividing Axe!" The fiend simply raised its foot, stomping down on the puny samurai. It shattered in an instant, despite its attempt to defend itself.

The force of the explosion forced Christian to block out the oncoming fragments with his arms.

Christian: 0

Blake: 4000

"You used to be a lot stronger, Christian. Where did your unbeatable swarming power go?"

With the smoke cleared, Christian finally found the words and room to speak. "That's..."

"Ever since you started chasing that girl, you started growing lax. Well, more than usual," Blake pointed out.

"I..."

"What," Blake deadpanned. "What is it?"

"You wouldn't understand."

A wisp of pink disappeared from behind the boy's dormitory.


	8. The Awakening

_Author's Note_

Wanderer: On Kotaru--you won't find that anywhere that I know of. I just picked something that vaguely sounded Japanese in order for Blake to have something ridiculous to make fun of Christian with. As far as the voice goes... it has to be abrupt. You'll see.

* * *

-~-~~-~

Chapter Eight: The Awakening

-~-~~-~

Tercia opened the door to her dormitory. It carried the same design format as the boy's dormitory, though in the place of Torey and Roy there were Alcyone and Alexandra.

"Welcome back, dudette," the silver-haired girl uttered.

Tercia's reply was swift. "Thank you." She ambled over to her bunk at the top.

"Where have you been, dearie?" Alexandra asked. "I called Mister Adams earlier and he said you left a while ago."

After some hesitation, Tercia responded, "Out." She clambered onto her bed.

"You ain't chillin' with some dude without tellin' us, right?" Alcyone asked.

"It is nothing like that," Tercia shot back.

Alexandra huffed. "No need to be defensive with us, Tercia." She returned to reading her magazine.

The pink-haired girl simpered. "My apologies..."

"No offense taken, dearie."

A knock came at their door. It was heavy and quick, as if whoever was there required immediate attention. "Excuse me," the wood-muffled voice said. It was notably feminine. "May I come in?"

"Who might you be?" Alcyone asked.

Without hesitation, the voice responded, "It's Catherine." She paused. "Catherine Rauchman."

After a mere moment of thinking, Alcyone slunked out of her bunk. "Oh, right," She slurred. "You're the snake lady."

Catherine chuckled. "Oh, no, no..." She sighed. "Though I guess that name really isn't too far off the mark."

"Well," the silver-haired girl began as she opened the door. "Come on in..."

The girl who entered the room had long, raven-black hair that stretched down to her knees in straight cascades. She had golden eyes in her small, fair face. Her smile was seemingly genuine, but her eyes carried secrets behind them. Her figure was also nothing to scoff at, and her tightly-fitting uniform made certain to accentuate it (her tiny shirt and short skirt left little to the imagination). She also seemed unreasonably emaciated, and her red jacket certainly wasn't helping--it was tailored similarly to the rest of her clothing.

"So, what's up, snake lady?" Alcyone's lavender eyes were glossy.

Catherine was quick to pounce on the question. "Well, you see.. I thought I heard something interesting from next door... something about little Tercia falling for someone?"

"Catherine," Alexandra said sternly, "we did _not _invite you in so you could play matchmaker."

"Oh, but this isn't matchmaker," Catherine noted as she lightly brushed aside some hair from her face. "This is just... information-gathering."

"We've heard. You were collecting information at breakfast too." Alexandra's voice sounded annoyed.

"There's no need to get snippy with me, Alex." Catherine sauntered up the ladder. She peeked her head at Tercia's face, which was staring intently at more untouched math. "So, who's the boy?" She asked playfully.

Tercia was clearly uninterested. "It is none of your concern."

"Of course it is, my dear!" her raven locks spilled onto Tercia's bed as she pulled forward. Her fingers slithered underneath Tercia's chin, handling it gingerly. "Come now, we're all girls," Catherine playfully hissed. "Secrets don't make friends."

Reflexively, Tercia edged away while batting away Catherine's groping fingers. "You are not my friend. Please leave."

This did not have the desired effect, rather, it encouraged the girl further. "You can't keep it forever. Sooner or later, the boy... or is it a girl? I wouldn't know. Rumors can spread quite quickly. Faster than you can run." Catherine pulled out her PDA and began typing. "In just a few seconds, I could have you publicly made into a lesbian. Which is the worse fate, telling us of your affections or public humiliation?"

"Blackmail?" Tercia deadpanned. "Inelegant."

"Oh?" Catherine was prepared. "All I must do is hit send."

Alexandra clearly would not stand for this. "Come on, Catherine. If she doesn't want to talk about it, don't make her."

"Yeah, it's just not cool to egg her on like that," Alcyone wisped.

"How else is she going to talk?" Catherine insisted. "If I don't pressure her now, no one will know. Ever!"

Tercia's eyes narrowed down at the girl. "What could you possibly gain from this?"

At this, Catherine's golden eyes gleamed. "I gain so much."

Tercia shifted further away. "If you have nothing substantial to gain, I suggest you leave. I have work to do."

"Work?" Catherine scoffed. "Please. Don't try to avoid this. Once I find juicy news, I will not relent."

"There is no substance to this news. I am not... affectionate of anyone."

The snake lady grinned, and edged closer and closer. "Your hesitation tells me otherwise, little Tercie."

"I entreat you, leave."

"This is not a request or negotiation, Tercia. I am now _ordering _you to tell me." Her finger lightly depressed the button to send.

Tercia was largely unfazed. "You can say what you will. I have nothing more to tell you."

"Then here's what we'll do. We'll duel--if I win, you'll tell me what I want to know, and if I lose I'll tell _you _something. In fact, this message will simply be deleted." She hit a button, and what few lines of text there were on the message simply disappeared. "See? You've nothing to lose now."

"I will not duel you," Tercia firmly stated.

That was not what Catherine needed to hear. "You _will _duel me, so help me the three gods don't smite us down."

At that moment, an earthquake resounded throughout the island. It was not earth-shattering, but the whole island was made aware of a heavy rumbling. Lights flickered throughout but inevitably were shut off. Panic echoed just as heavily through the dormitories as the wailing of the ground below. A single fissure opened between the twin houses of red, effectively dividing them. Underneath the fissure was not a rushing body of ocean, rather, a seemingly infinite expanse of darkness opened. Spirits of all shapes and sizes rushed out, cackling in myriad tones. A red, a blue, and a yellow flash emerged from the chasm. Each light descended on its corresponding dormitory. Red descended upon the Slifer Girl's, Yellow descended upon Ra Girl's, and Blue plummeted to the Obelisk Boy's.

Three deep-seated voices emanated in unison, one with a hiss, one with a screech, one with a roar.

_We three are gathered here..._

_To commence our reign of primal fear..._

_Here we stay in shells of flesh,_

_Encased where body and spirit do not mesh._

_Monsters act at our behest,_

_And all will be sent to eternal rest!_

In the office of Principal Kans, the room was completely unshaken. Kans sat calmly at his desk, fingertips tapping opposite fingertips. "It's begun." He stood up and shuffled to the hidden door, briskly opening it and walking through. "We took too many chances, you three. Ice, earth, and fire proved inefficient... I'm sorry." He ran his fingers along the spines of the books, and stopped at a particular one. He pulled it out, and began thumbing through pages.

He halted on a page filled with symbols and began to chant, "Three that were sealed and summoned hence, be returned to thy immortal rest! Signs of pain and sighs of crows, source of everlasting woe! Those who beckoned thee and forbid thy company, return to thy dark sanctuary!"

A beam of white light shot up from the center of the academy, splitting into three and arcing towards the aforementioned dormitories. Bleak white spheres surrounded each, encapsulating them in veils of protection.

Kans spoke aloud once more, seemingly addressing the previous three lights. "I don't know what allowed you three to break free... but I will not allow this to simply occur."

The roaring voice thundered, "_You do not understand, human._"

The hissing voice added, "_This is not for you to decide._"

Finally, the screeching voice concluded, "_Things are set in motion. You cannot stop it._"

"I _can _stop you from going anywhere else." He snapped his fingers. "Ezekiel! Spatial freezes over each dorm, now!"

A thick, sickly voice reverberated over the loudspeakers: "**It shall be done.**" Just a moment later, the loudspeakers reverberated again, this time with a crackled, worried tone. "**Sir... the devices aren't working.**"

Kans narrowed his eyes. "So we could only slow them. We'll need to beat them into submission this time..." He paused. "Ezekiel!"

"**Yes, sir?**"

"Bring me the three."

"**Understood, sir.**"

With that, the loudspeaker shut off and Kans was left alone. In his library, the only word that could be heard was this one: "Shit."

Back in the room of Slifer girls, everything was disheveled. Furniture, lamps, and the people within were scattered and in shambles. Catherine lay sprawled atop Tercia's unconscious body, while Alexandra and Alcyone were in opposite corners. The roof had caved in, yet there was a spot free of debris around Tercia and Catherine. The raven-haired girl was the first to come to conscious thought, who awoke with a groan.

_Where am I? _She thought. _What... _She looked above, and saw a sky of white light. "This isn't..." She started shuddering. In desperation she cried out, "Am I dead?!"

Alcyone was the second to awaken. "Damn, girl... keep it down..." She muttered, shielding her eyes. "What happened?"

"I... I don't know..." Catherine managed. Dust clouded the air, made keenly visible in the stark bright light. "I remember an earthquake... and then... it's all blank from there."

Alcyone rubbed her head. "I dun remember anythin' past that either..."

The ethereal voice reared its incorporeal head. _Two among seven... _It carried not the feral tones of the three animalistic voices of earlier, and though it was clearer and more human-sounding, its formless nature inspired fear in those who could hear.

Catherine and Alcyone looked up at each other in terror. With eyes widened and brows raised, they both began to breathe heavily. Gold eyes met glossy lavender. Either hue increased in intensity, and wisps of black smoke began licking at them from their own shadows. Neither girl spoke or flinched. Their mouths hung open, as if surprised, and their pupils receded into a pool of color. The tendrils of darkness permeating from their own shadows entered their hosts' mouths, draining their skin of color.

The voice now resounded across the island, _The seven have been chosen. The seven have been awakened. The seven are now. We are legion._

_Go forth, my apostles._

In unison, Alcyone and Catherine stood up. At once, they raised their hands to the white sky above them. Tendrils of black matter burst forth from their palms and coiled upwards. They appeared like snakes, ever-twisting and entwined. Once they reached the pure white ceiling, they spread outwards like roots. The tendrils began eroding the surface, poking through and scraping along it.

Tercia awoke with a groan. "What..." As she surveyed her bright environment, she noticed two figures before her... the twisting black tendrils... and Alexandra's still-unconscious form. "What... are you two doing?"

Gray-eyed Tercia was met with silence. She asked again, "What are you doing?"

Lavender and gold swiftly found prey of gray. Together they chanted, "We perform the work of the one who sent us. We are enlightened. We will clear a path." Their tone was morose, deep, and depressive.

"Path? Enlightened?" Tercia shoved herself to her feet, and her eyes shot open in realization. "Alexandra! Wake up!" She rushed to the girl of green hair, shaking her furiously. "Please!"

After much grunting, Alexandra finally awakened. "Dearie, what..." She squinted in the permeating brightness. "What are they doing?"

"I do not know... they seem... possessed."

"Then we must free them!" Alexandra cried. She struggled to her feet and marched towards Alcyone. "Listen to me! Alcie! I know you're in there!" Alcyone made no movement and continued to erode the barrier with Catherine. "Alcie!" She tried to shake the silver-haired girl, but she was immutable.

Tercia was skeptical. "Alexandra... be careful."

"I know."

Alexandra's lively auburn eyes were confronted with pupil-less lavender irises. The bags under Alcyone's eyes were made much darker. With a stonelike gaze, Alcyone asked, "What is it?"

"What's wrong with you? You're..."

"One with a greater power."

There was a whiplike crack. A red mark appeared on Alcyone's unmoved face, while Alexandra's hand floated in front of her. "Alcie... no, I refuse to believe you're the Alcie I know." She slid on her duel disk. As it lit up she somberly said, "I'll force it out of you."

Alcyone looked to Catherine, and in the same dreary tone as earlier she asked, "My lady, permit me leave. I'll eliminate this pest for you, troublesome as it is."

In like manner Catherine responded, "So be it." The twin columns of darkness pulsing from her hands doubled in size. Alcyone then dropped her arms, and the columns emanating from her disappeared. Tendrils emerged from Alcyone's shadow, wrapping around her left arm. It formed a twisted likeness to Alexandra's own disk--incorporeal and pulsing.

Tercia stepped backward. _What in the world... _

With finality in her voice Alcyone stated, "How bothersome... we duel."

Alexandra nodded.

Alexandra: 4000

Alcyone: 4000

Alexandra drew. "I'll begin. Treeborn Frog is summoned in defense mode!" A small yellow frog with angelic wings rose to the field. It had a bandage across its chin. (1/100/100) "One card is set. Your turn."

"I draw, and I summon Cloudian - Sheep Cloud in defense mode." Winds converged and formed a small cloud. It had two small slits in its shape, resembling eyes. (1/0/0) "It's too much work to think of something different... I'll set this."

"Before your turn ends, Spiritual Water Art - Aoi is activated!" The angelic frog disappeared. "I have to tribute a water monster, but I can now look at your hand and remove one card from it." _Monster Reborn, Spirit Barrier, Cloudian - Acid Cloud, and Cloudian - Poison Cloud. _"Spirit Barrier is removed!" She pulled a card from her deck. "Now that it is my turn, Treeborn frog is resummoned, and Submarine Frog is summoned in attack mode!" A goggled frog with an enlarged head and a red spear emerged in a spout of water. "Submarine Frog attacks! Harpoon Torpedo!" The frog grasped its spear and threw it through the cloud. The weapon then sliced along Alcyone's side, allowing blood to casually drip down her leg. "Alcie!" the green-haired girl cried in shock. "What's going on?!" The cloud split into two, each with similar statistics. (1/0/0)

Alexandra: 4000

Alcyone: 2800

Alcyone sighed. "Being in a physical body... so troublesome. I really don't like this."

"Get out of her body! Now!" Alexandra demanded. "I will not stand for you torturing her!"

Alcyone laughed. "Me? Torturing her? Too much effort." She shrugged her body. "Talking's too much effort."

"What... what are you?"

"You tire me.. stop making me talk."

"...I set one card."

"Then it's my turn..." As she drew, she scoffed. "Lemme tell you something... you're gonna lose. There's nothin' you can do. Let me nap, throw the match for me."

Alexandra's face betrayed no trace of humor. "Sorry, that won't happen."

Alcyone laughed. It wasn't a wispy, listless laugh like she normally would have. It was barbaric. It sounded sad. "Here, I'll show you... what this girl is too lazy to do. I activate Double Summon. With this I can normal summon twice this turn. I'll make full use of it... troublesome. I summon Cloudians Acid Cloud and Cirrostratus!" A sickly green fog first appeared, swirling together into a humanoid form. It had a head and torso, with the same slits as its brethren. It had thick, wispy arms. Next to it a pink swirl formed an obese cat shape, with fully formed eyes and a pair of whiskers. Three tiny clouds hovered above the green cloud, while four surrounded the pink one. (4/500/0) (4/900/0) "Most o' these Cloudians gain Fog counters equal to the amount of their kind on the field... Acid Cloud was summoned with three, and Cirro was summoned with four."

"I'm aware..." Alexandra said flatly.

"Then I'm sure you know what happens when they remove counters."

Alexandra made no reply.

Alcyone shrugged. "Whatever. Acid Cloud, destroy her facedown. Acid Rain!" Two of the three wisps entered the sickly green form, and sulfur-colored rain sprayed from a hidden crease in the cloud's head. Alexandra's card shattered, revealing her Negate Attack. "Fair enough. Cirro, strike down both of her monsters with Mist Shot!" The four wisps above the catlike cloud divided and careened towards the frogs, and as they were enveloped in a slight fog they disintegrated.

"My Treeborn Frog will revive itself every turn!" Alexandra shouted.

"Not this turn, girl." Alcyone pointed ahead. "Attack her directly, my clouds!" The green cloud floated forward first, followed by the pink. The green cloud sent a wispy fist at Alexandra while the pink one simply rammed into her.

Alexandra: 2600

Alcyone: 2800

Alexandra began to cough. "What's this?" Though Alcyone's monsters returned to their master, traces of a green and pink fog permeated the air around her. As she wheezed, she managed to say, "Alcie, what's going on?"

Alcyone sighed. "It takes too much effort to explain... I'm sure you'll get it later on."

Tercia stood by. She had her disk on her arm, watching Catherine intently. _Alexandra is getting hurt. Catherine and Alcyone are acting... possessed, _she thought. _I do not understand. This is... supposed to be a game. _Tercia narrowed her eyes. "What is this...?"

The barrier above began to crack. Black fissures rippled through its surface, spreading like wildfire. With a wretched groan it finally caved, shattering like glass. The shards and the remainder of that barrier disintegrated within milliseconds.

Catherine dropped her arms. Her work was done. "Now then..." she began. Her tone was seething, yet it carried no bite to it. "I'll play with you, pink princess."


End file.
